Gangster Love
by ThatBlackGirl
Summary: Huey Freeman is the leader of a gang in the streets of Chicago who never expected a night out would make him meet a girl like Jazmine Dubois. As time goes on, he realises that it's not easy being a gang leader let alone being in a relationship. Especially with a looming threat hanging over them. Can they find a way to work together or is it too much for them to handle?
1. Chapter 1: Introduction

Everyone knows of a gang. They each have to uphold a reputation in order to have that power. Some people would say gangs are toxic; they exploit people's weakness and use it for their personal gain to build their own empire but this gang wasn't like what you have seen.

The leader was only 25 and ran the streets of Chicago. If you ever tried to cross them, you would not get off easy.

The name of this gang?

The Panthers.

Known for their no shit taking, powerful men and women and their regular booming business. We cannot forget about their killings, which they only did if they absolutely needed to, not like other gangs who will just do it how they like. To people on the outside, it looks like they are just dangerous thugs but, on the inside, it was much more than that. You had to prove yourself to be worthy enough to be a part of the gang. They were family, so they didn't take betrayal or disrespect lightly.

Huey Percy Freeman was currently the leader of The Panthers with his younger brother Riley Escobar Freeman as his right-hand man. The gang has been passed down for 5 generations and each generation made the gang even better.

Huey was smart. People thought he would go off to college and get out of the game but when his father was nearly killed, he stayed to protect the Freeman and gang name. This young man did not take shit from no one. Being a black belt in 4 different styles of marital arts made him almost untouchable as he could dodge whatever they threw at him, maybe not bullets but you get it. Also, being bilingual made business easier as he could talk to the Chinese, Latinos and other people about expanding his business.

His little brother Riley was more of the "thug" out of the two. If you hear of a shootout, then he was probably around the scene. Huey would try and rail him in every now and then but other times he would like Riley go crazy. He handed the streets while Huey handed the overall business.

"Ay yo Huey! We gotta problem." Riley Freeman announced as he walked into the office of Huey Freeman.

"What do you mean we got a problem?" He asked his brother as he looked up from his paperwork.

"Some niggas trying to take our turf. Even held up one of our young ones out there."

Huey leaned back into his chair. This gang only sold marijuana. No crack cocaine, meth, none of that. Strictly weed.

"Them boys alright?" He asked. He called them boys but they were 18. They only recruited people who were 18 plus, anyone younger couldn't get in. Yes, they were a gang but they still had some morals.

"Yeah. Mikey a bit shook but he good, Mateo good too."

"Do they know who it might be?"

"One had a Russian accent. It's the fucking Russians again man." Riley crossed his tattooed muscular arms as he sat in front of Huey.

"Fuck... call in Hiro and Caesar." Riley nodded and did just that. Within five minutes, their most trusted men walked into Huey's office.

"Sup nigga." Caesar said as they all gathered in the room. Caesar handed the weed distributions, which may seem ironic since he is the Jamaican of the group, while Hiro handed the money and technology.

"One word: Russians." Riley told them.

"Damn they can't leave us alone?" Hiro complained as he pulled out a stack of money and began counting it.

"They disappear for years and decided to come back now. If they try some shit its game out. Nobody should be fucking with us. Spread the word about keeping an eye out." Huey instructed them and they all nodded along in understanding.

"Ay I found a new club for you to buy but it's not like the other night clubs. As a matter of fact, let's go to that shit now. Get up bitches." Riley said happily as he rushed out the door. The three men stayed in their spots for a moment, confused about what Riley meant before finally giving in and following him out.

* * *

Somewhere not far, a group of beautiful girls are getting ready in a dressing room.

"Alright ladies! It's a busy night tonight so I don't expect no half ass performances."

If you haven't guessed it, they are in the strip club and the room was full of strippers. All different shapes, sizes and races.

The one taking lead name was 'Emerald'. Her name came from her eyes. Everyone would say her eyes sparkled like emeralds when she was growing up so when she started dancing, that's the name she set her mind on. She had a cute face and cute waist with strawberry blonde/brown curls that was shaped in an afro. At only 25 she has built up a reputation at the club which every girl respected.

"Alright, Cotton and Chyna you're up first. Then we have Rose, Mariah and Carmen. After that it's me and Diamond. You should all know the rest of the order." Emerald instructed and the first two made their way on stage.

Emerald looked down at her outfit. It was a baby pink, suede, body suit that just about covered her breast and matching 7-inch heels. It completed her skin tone well. This was who Emerald is but Jazmine Aaliyah Dubois was a whole nother bad ass bitch but that's for later, as for now 'Emerald' has a show to run.

"You ready girl? I hear there's some gangster up in this bitch tonight." Her best friend Royalty Williams AKA Diamond said as she moved over to where she was sitting touching up her make up. She had on a baby blue fur bra and pantie set with some baby blue 7-inch heels.

"You know I stay ready. I feel sorry for Sapphire and Ruby because they're gonna be running up and down all night." Emerald replied. Sapphire was their other friend whose real name was Cindy McPhearson as well as Ruby whose real name was Ming Long-Dou. These four have a lot of history together but when they are at work, they call each other by their stage names and their government names are someone completely different to who was standing in the clubs.

"Yeah. I can't wait to get me some of them thugs because you know they got money." Diamond began to dance excitedly to which Emerald joined in.

"We finna be balling bitch!" The two laughed before going into general conversation as they waited for their time to go on stage and earn some money.

Little did the girls know, those "thugs" are more than they bargained for.

* * *

**This is my second Boondocks story so I am still kinda scared about where this will go since it is different from my other one but make sure you read both and leave reviews. Also, I know, names are weak but I couldn't think of nothing and hopefully you don't get confused with the name switches.**

**-TBG**


	2. Chapter 2: Club

"I hope y'all enjoyed that, give it up for our three lovely ladies!" The DJ shouted to the crowd which had the people cheer in excitement.

Huey and his crew had their own section right up to the stage. The club Riley was talking about was a strip club which none of the boys were expecting, they thought he was just talking about normal night clubs.

"Damn Riley. Where you find this place?" Caesar asked.

"Nigga I know where everything is in this city. This my motherfucking city. This club has been underground for a while, it just started popping off again."

Huey listened to his brother and shook his head. Of course Riley would take them to a strip club. It's not like Huey hasn't been to one before, it's just that he usually knew when they were going. They had not long ago arrived to the club and he was just getting comfortable. They had come in at the end of the first performance and sat through the last one with the three girls on stage. They didn't really capture his attention; they were kind of mediocre.

"Up next we got two of the baddest girls in the club. They are two out of four of our sexy group called 'Gems' so make sure you look out for Ruby and Sapphire by the bar. Give it up, for Diamond and Emerald!" The DJ shouted and the men and few women in the club, stood up and began cheering even louder than they was before.

'They must be that good.' Huey thought as he took a sip of his champagne.

The two girls walked out onto the stage and this made Huey sit up in his chair.

'Damn. These girls are fine.' He thought. Now he just had to see if they were worth his money.

"Y'all see them girls? They are sexy man I told you. These the ones that people keep talking about." Riley cheered as the girls made their way towards the pole.

Emerald and Diamond began to dance to Chris Brown's new single Wobble Up. During the slower tempos, they would be performing tricks on the pole. Climbing to the top, spinning down. Doing splits in the air or upside down, pretending to walk on air. The faster tempos were when they started twerking effortlessly. Notes were being thrown to their feet every second and the stage was being littered with money.

They got off the poles and began to collect some of their money and stuff it in their bras and panties. They pulled a guy and a girl onto the stage and told them to stand in front of the pole which they did. The duo started to twerk all on them and even went into a handstand. Huey understood why they were the main acts in this club, they knew what they were doing.

Just by looking at the stage floor, Huey could count at least a good 300 there. As they finished with their two volunteers, Huey stood up slowly.

"Nigga where you going?" Caesar questioned him but he ignored them.

"Oh shit what he bout to do?" Riley laughed but followed his older brother.

Emerald had just helped her volunteers back down off the stage when she saw someone else walk up to the stage. It was a man around her age with a large afro and a deep scowl. He didn't look like someone who would come to these clubs but as long as he was paying and wasn't creepy then by all means he could stay. He looked very interested in her and by the way he dressed he had money so she might as well play into his hand.

Huey watched Emerald go up to the DJ before coming back with a mic and whispering something to Diamond.

"Alright how you all feeling tonight?" Emerald called out to the crowd who cheered as response. She passed the mic to Diamond.

"So, that was our act done for tonight." Everyone awed hearing this. "But! My good girl with her steam fish and okra body* feels as if we should give you one more show." Diamond said in a Jamaican accent and the room interrupted in cheers and you could even see people going over to the atm to take out more money so they could throw more onto the stage.

Suddenly, Huey saw Emerald and Diamond coming his way. He didn't realise his brother was standing next to him until he saw Diamond hold out her long nails towards him, beckoning him to come on stage. He looked up and saw Emerald doing the same to him. He understood why that was her name now. Her eyes looked like big, bright emeralds.

"Why don't you come and say hi baby boy." Emerald grinned at him before pulling him up on the stage. During the time it took to get them on stage, two chairs suddenly popped up.

"Ay! Get it Freeman!" Hiro laughed from his seat ready to throw some money.

'Freeman?' Emerald thought. She heard of the gang leaders but they didn't look like it was them. She pushed the topic to the back of her mind. 'I'll leave that until later. I got a job to do.'

The DJ began to play Rihanna-Pour It Up and the girls didn't waste no time to jump into a routine. Huey sat and watched quietly which surprised Jazmine since her usual customers would be hyped up. Riley on the other hand was even singing along to the song.

"Huey!" Riley shouted over the music. "Let's make it rain!"

Right on cue with the lyrics 'Throw it, throw it up/Watch it fall off from the sky', the brothers threw money in the air all over them which made the crowd go wild. The girls were grinning hard as they realised they chose the ballers of the night and they were sexy too. The Freeman's had a whole lot of skin rubbing on them and they didn't complain one bit. The girl's outfits where hugging them in the right places, which brought out their amazing bodies.

The song had just finished and everyone began to cheer and holler.

"Damn! Now to all the new people that are here today, you see why the people loves the Gems so much! Fuck they some beautiful ladies. Now we gonna take a 10 minutes break before the next set of ladies come out so in the meantime make sure you turn up one time you feel me!" The DJ said on the mic before playing music. The rest of the other strippers began to circle around the room and everyone began dancing and singing.

"You do private shows?" Riley asked Diamond whose ass was still up in his face as she bent down to collect her money.

"For the right price." She smirked and Riley's mirrored hers.

Huey on the other hand didn't say a word to Emerald even though he wanted to. It was too open. His brother and friends would be all over him so he didn't say anything.

Emerald looked at the man she just gave a lap dance to. She could tell he was feeling conflicted like he wanted to ask her something so she made the first move. She rested her hand on his muscular thighs and leaned forward so he had the perfect view of her breast.

"You know if you wanna stare even longer you can pay for a little privacy in the back." She smiled at him before signally to her partner that they should leave. They have people that will collect the rest of the money for them. "I guess I will see you soon."

With that the two walked away which gave the boys an amazing view of their ass and hips swaying left to right as they walked off to what they guessed was the dressing rooms.

"I told you it was a fire club!" Riley hadn't stopped smiling since he got on the stage.

"Yeah man them girls were something else. I hate to say but I am actually jealous of you two niggas." Caesar laughed but Huey wasn't paying any attention. For some reason, Emerald was stuck in his mind.

"I don't want everyone to get all crazy with the money spending, we got the Russians out here trying to steal our shit, we need all our money right now." Hiro advised his friends who nodded.

"Well, let me just spend a few on some Diamond booty right now. Later bitches." Riley then proceeded to practically skip away which was funny for his friends to watch.

Huey then took it upon himself that it was his time to find one of the Gem's. The one with the green eyes.

"I'll be back." He said and walked away towards the private rooms before Hiro or Caesar could question him. That's the last thing he wanted to happen.

"How they just going to leave us like that?" Hiro questioned annoyingly to his friend left next to him who just had to shrug.

"I don't know. All I know is that I need another drink. Waiter!"

* * *

**The four have now met. Thank you for the reviews so far, make sure you read my other story 'Trials and Tribulations' which is about the same characters in high school and going through a lot of different things in their lives. It just took an interesting turn too.**

**The term 'Steam fish and okra body' is a Jamaican saying which basically means that a girl's body is nice and thick; shaped good.**

**Let's see what happens in the private rooms.**

**-TBG**


	3. Chapter 3: Private Room

Emerald and Diamond had just finished counting their first set of money they earned for the night.

"Alright. I got $537, how much you got?" Emerald asked her partner. All the other girls were rushing around touching up their make up or changing before going back out.

"I got $785." Diamond calculated the total on her phone. "That's $1322. We get $661 each."

"We can easily get a few more hundreds for the night." Emerald said confidently. The two girls high fived and laughed before putting their money safely away because you couldn't always trust all these bitches in here, and got changed into different outfits.

"Hola chicas! You were muy bonita out there." Another dancer came up to them. She was an afro-Latina from Puerto Rico who was two years older than Emerald but had only been at the club for 18 months.

"Gracias Carmen. It's a busy night tonight." Emerald replied.

"I know. That's why I'm not staying too long, just came to put some of my winnings away. Adios!" She called out before running back outside making the girls laugh.

"Ladies! Ladies! Why are you all slacking? We got people out there with money in their hands, go and get it!" The owner Louis clapped aggressively as he walked into the room which made the dancers roll their eyes. He was a middle age white man who had a wife and 3 kids at home but decided to spend majority of his time being around half naked women. Some girls slept with him but Emerald and her close friends stayed far away from him, he knew not to try anything with them because he couldn't afford to lose them. They were his headliners for most of the nights.

"We just regrouping." Diamond said as she got up to get her and Emerald's next outfits.

"Well do it quicker. I got two private rooms for you. Big ballers so don't take too long." With that Louis walked out the dressing room not before snapping at one of the girls to get out his way.

"I swear we need better management." Emerald said annoyingly.

"Right. Anyway, I bet he was talking about those sexy boys we took on stage. They looked like twins." Diamond said as she slipped into some white short shorts and a fishnet v neck crop top that was also white. Emerald had the same version in green. They had to have flower skin toned pasties over their nipples since the top had holes in it.

"I know but the afro one is defo mine." Emerald laughed as she put on her outfits.

"Ok girl I see you claiming some dick. Here's me thinking I would be the first to jump on them." Diamond said as she put on her lip-gloss and fixed her hair.

"Whatever. Let's go get this shmoney baby!" With that the two girls left their dressing rooms to go to their awaiting customers.

* * *

Huey was sitting nervously in the room. It was comfortable and warm but he has never been in a private room before, that was more Caesar and Riley's thing while him and Hiro would sit in the VIP area. He felt weird asking for a room for just him and a specific girl. Emerald had done a number on him, more than what he would've liked.

Her skin was soft, her eyes were pretty and her curls were curled to perfection. He just wanted to see her again. Who would have though a stripper could make a gangster feel this way?

"I hear you've been wait for me." The angelic voice said which made Huey turn his head towards the door. Her legs were going on for miles as it strutted in like a model on a catwalk in front of thousands of fashion designers.

"And what if I did? Is that a bad thing?" He questioned as she came over to him.

"No. It's my job to satisfy your pleasure of watching not touching." She climbed onto of his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Let's take it slow."

She moved slight to select a song on the iPad that was connected to speakers in the room. Ciara-Body Party began to play.

'Oh, it's like that?' Huey thought as she began to grind her hips against his. Emerald was definitely worth his money, especially since Huey didn't spend his money lightly.

Emerald grabbed his large hands and traced it over her body. Technically, she shouldn't be letting him touch her but at least she was the one directing him. She leaned forward and began singing the song lightly and seductively in his ear, sending a shiver down his spine. Huey found a $20 in his pocket and stuffed in her shorts, making her giggle from feeling him grip her waist.

"Oh, you got money money?" She laughed at him as the song came to an end and another soothing song came one.

"You can say that." He replied as he leaned forward and popped open a bottle of Hennessy. "You drink?"

"Of course I drink. I work at a strip club baby but I really shouldn't be drinking at work." She told him as she rubbed his muscular arms.

"I won't snitch."

"Eh. Good enough for me." Huey poured the brown liquor into two glasses. "Cheers." Emerald said as she took a sip and instantly her body warmed up.

"I see why they call you Emerald." He told her. He must of drunken too much today because he is being way too social and almost desperate today. All over this one stripper who just wanted his money.

"And why is that baby?" She asked but she already knew the answer to it. It was obvious, she heard it many times before.

"Your eyes. It's a hypnotizing green colour. Precious enough that it should be named after a gem." He told her as he stared right into it. For some reason, not even she could turn away from him, he was just too damn good.

"That's why my names Emerald." She answered him as she stroked her long nails along his sharp jaw line.

"But what's your real name?" She laughed at this question and moved off his lap but her legs were still hanging over his.

"Now you know I can't tell you that. Issa against the rules. Don't worry about my name, what's yours?"

"Huey. Huey Freeman." Confirming his name made her naturally large eyes, go wider than it already was.

"Wait... Freeman? As in the gang...?" She asked nervously. They have had their few shares of gang members in the club but never a leader like The Huey Freeman. Everyone knew his name but it was hard to put a face to him as well as the other members who run everything. If she remembered their names correctly, it was his brother Riley, who was currently with Diamond. The other two outside were who she guessed were Hiro and Caesar, the other top dogs in the gang.

"Yeah. I run it. Does that worry you?" He asked, trying not to show his concern. This wasn't normal for him. He didn't like it.

"As long as you don't kill me." She said half seriously.

"I only kill if I need to."

Jazmine opened her mouth to ask him another question when the door swung open.

"Emerald! Get your ass out here and do table work. It's getting dry out there. Fuck, you and Diamond have been all over the same customers the whole night. Ruining my business!" Louis shouted. Before Emerald could cuss him out, her stormed out of the room and slammed the door behind him.

"He's such a dick. I hope we get a new manager." Emerald rolled her eyes as she stood up and put her now empty glass back on the small table.

"Does he always talk to you like that?" Huey asked annoyingly. Something about the guy didn't sit right with him and he always trusted his gut.

"He tries it. He's lucky he walked out because I would have ripped him a new one and Diamond is worse than me so I hope he didn't talk to her like that." Emerald sighed as she walked towards the door.

"If you need me to fuck him up just ask." Huey smirked as he followed her out. As they stepped out, they saw Riley and Diamond on their right and they looked very interested in each other.

Riley pulled out his phone and handed it to the young dancer who then started typing on it.

"I guess your brother got my girls number. Good thing no one else is here." Emerald laughed and Huey just shook his head.

"Forget about him. I'll leave you to do your thing."

"See you later... maybe." Emerald smirked as she ran her hand over his body and sent him a sexy wink. "Diamond lets go hoe!" She grabbed her arm and dragged her away from the young boy.

"Bye Riley." She waved flirtatiously at him before trailing behind Emerald into the main room.

Huey looked at his brother who walked over to him with a stupid grin on his face.

"Why you smiling so hard?"

"Did you not see that girl?" Riley looked at his brother like he was the dumbest person he's ever seen.

"Whatever. Let's go."

"Nah nah. We staying till the club close. Only another 30 minutes to go." Riley grinned before bouncing to where Hiro and Caesar had been on their own the whole time, Huey following slowly behind.

It has been a very interesting night and he sort of didn't want it to end just soon.

* * *

**A lil Huey and Emerald/Jazmine. Soon Emerald will become Jazmine.**

**-TBG**


	4. Chapter 4: The Freeman's Club

The girl had just finished for the night and had changed into their everyday clothes. For the first time tonight, they got to talk to Cindy and Ming.

"How was working at the bar?" Now Jazmine, asked.

"Shit was crazy. I had Cindy running up and down every second delivery orders. You know them other girls can't do it like her. Got good tips too." Ming told her.

"Forget about us. I have been hearing whispers about you two and two sexy boys." Cindy raised an eyebrow her friends as she tied on her sneakers.

"These bitches really have loud mouths." Jazmine raised her voice annoyingly. She didn't care that the other girls heard.

"You know how it is around here. Everyone be in each other shit. Anyway, yeah, we were with these two niggas. They were brothers and not only that, they're the Freeman's. The one that run that gang." Royalty explained.

"Shit for real? You lucky hoes. They definitely have money." Ming faked frowned.

"Yeah just look at all the money... why the fuck is my bag of money open? I didn't leave it like this." Jazmine asked as her anger began to flare. She did not play when it came to her cash.

"Me too! Ok bitches! Which one of you dutty piece of shits stole our cash?!" Royalty shouted into the dressing room. Some girls even avoided eye contact by how scared they were of Royalty. "Someone best started talking before I really buss a switch!"

"It was none of us. It was that bitch Louis. He came in here looking through your shit, he was mumbling about how you stayed too long with them niggas." Cotton stepped up.

"You best be fucking lying." Jazmine asked as she got even more angry. Never mess with a stripper and her money, she will fight. Which is exactly what she was going to do when Cotton nodded her head in conformation.

"Let's go beat a bitch up." Ming smiled as the two fuming girls marched towards the man's office. He should seriously be scared right now.

* * *

Five minutes before

The club was coming to a close and The Panthers were the only ones not moving towards the exit.

"So, what y'all think?" Riley grinned. He loved it and he 100% knew Huey did too. Even Hiro and Caesar said they enjoyed their selves. The night was a hit.

"Club has potential. Needs some updates but we can deal with that." Huey said thoughtfully as he looked around the room.

"Is that a yes I hear?" Riley asked his brother impatiently who just rolled his eyes at his younger brother.

"Yes Riley." Huey answered and Riley did one loud clap in celebration.

"Let's go talk to the manager." Hiro said and the boys nodded and made their way to the office.

Huey remembered how much of a dick he was to Emerald and wanted to fuck him up for disrespecting the woman the way he did. In his management, that would not happen. As they reached the office, they heard some moaning which was not what they were expecting to hear.

"Is he really fucking in there?" Caesar asked in disgust. He looked and saw his friends with an equally disgusted facial expression.

"Fuck it, I am not waiting till he finished." Riley cussed before bursting in.

As they entered, they heard the scream of a female and the shout of the male.

"How dare you barge into my office?! Who the fuck is you?" Louis shouted as he pulled up his trousers. The blonde, skinny, white girl tried to cover herself and run out but to the boys it didn't make no sense since she was just on stage practically naked.

"First of all, you best watch who you're fucking talking to. Second of all, you got a small dick. No homo." Riley laughed as he sat in one of the chairs in front of the owner's desk which he was now sitting behind flustered. Huey sat in the other chair next to his brother and the other two standing behind.

"I don't even know who you are." The man said sheepishly as he tried to ignore the last comment.

"Freeman." Huey replied with his signature straight face on show which caused the man to shrink back in fear as much as he didn't want to show it. Huey had that effect on people.

"Um, my apologies, what can I do for you? I hope you enjoyed your night here, I saw you had my two best dancers tonight. They didn't give you trouble, did they? I can fire them right now if you would like-"

"That won't be necessary." The man sighed in relief. "Because we're buying the club." The managers eyes went wide when he heard what Huey said. That was not what he expected.

"It is not up for sale."

"It is now and we just brought it." Caesar told him.

"What...? No! I own this club! You cannot take this away from me. This is my shit. I fucking dare you thugs to take this shit away from me!" The man shouted and his whole face turned red.

"Damn tomato man relax. You ain't gotta hype up like that." Riley said and Huey just rolled his eyes. The man really thought he was threatening to them, it was a big joke to see.

"Do I need to remind you who you're talking to?" Huey raised an eyebrow at the man but he stayed completely still which frightened the owner even more by his calmness.

"Uh, yo-you can't take this away from me, please. I have a wife and kids." Louis begged.

"Should have thought of them before you fucked that stripped across your desk." Hiro spoke up. The whole time he was there, he was creating a simplified contract. Huey could always trust Hiro for things like this, he was always quick on his feet.

"What am I meant to do?"

"Um get a job nigga." Riley rolled his eyes, getting annoyed.

"Fuck that. I am not going down without a fight-"

"Louis you piece of shit!"

Within seconds, the door swung open, four girls matched through and one kicked the man straight out the chair making him fall to the ground.

"Daaaammmmmnnnnn!" The boys were caught completely off guard.

They finally saw who it was; Emerald was the one that kicked him down while Diamond, the other two who they guessed were Ruby and Sapphire, trailed behind.

"Where's our fucking money?!" Diamond shouted at Louis who was struggling to stand. Emerald really did a number on him.

"What are you talking about?" He asked from his position on the floor.

"You know what we're fucking talking about!" Emerald's face was very red right now.

Diamond got annoyed of how long it was taking him to stand up so she stood over him and lifted the man into his seat as if he weighed nothing.

'Damn she strong as fuck. I best not fuck with her.' Riley thought as he watched in amusement in his seat.

"You know there's other people in the room..." Ming tried to say but her angry friends were too mad to pay attention.

"Listen here motherfucker. We are missing $300 each so you best give that shit up. We got witnesses so don't even try it." Diamond towered over him on his left as Emerald was on his right. Louis has never done something like this so they were coming down hard so it didn't happen again.

"That's my money. I am going to start charging you hoes more to work here." Louis said angrily. Everyone was getting onto him tonight.

"Don't call us a hoe you tramp." The girl, who the boys guessed name was Sapphire (similar to Emeralds reason; the eyes) said.

"Give them their money." Huey spoke up. This made the two angry girls look up for the first time and saw the brothers and their friends. It made them realise that they were so angry, they only saw red and eyesight was locked on one person in the room.

"It's my money." Louis tried to say.

Getting annoyed, the girls grabbed the man's head and slammed it into the table. Louis screamed and held onto his nose as blood began to drip down his face.

"Remind me not to get on their bad side..." Caesar whispered to Hiro who laughed and agreed.

"You heard the man. Pay up." Diamond smirked as she enjoyed the scene in front of her.

"While you're at it, sign this shit." Hiro placed the paper in front of the man who seemed like he wanted to burst into tears. He quickly scribbled down his signature then reached into his draw and pulled out the money he took from the dancers.

"Happy now?" Louis said with frustration laced in his voice.

"Not yet." Huey looked him dead in his eyes which even scared the girls watching. "Now get the fuck out my club."

Within seconds, Louis got up from his chair and ran from the room and soon away from the club. Hopefully never to be seen again.

"Wait, your club?" Sapphire asked after a few silent seconds.

"Yeah mine. Just took it from that dick." Huey answered.

"Yes! Finally, he's gone!" Ruby said happily.

"Now, since we're going to be working together, I think we should introduce ourselves. I am the owner, Huey Freeman."

"I'm motherfucking Riley aka Reezy Freeman baby." The 'baby' was directed to Diamond who he winked at and she smiled right at him.

"Michael Caesar but call me Caesar."

"Hiro Otomo."

The girls saw it was their turn.

"Diamond."

"Sapphire."

"Ruby."

"Emerald."

"Ay ay. None of that. We work together. Throw them governments our way." Riley told them more for himself to find out Diamonds real name.

"Fine. Cindy McPhearson."

"Ming Long-Dou."

"Royalty Williams."

"Jazmine Dubois."

'Jazmine... nice name.' Huey thought as he nodded.

"It's late, we should leave. Tell the rest of the staff there will be a meeting tomorrow at 4pm. Don't tell them about the new management." Huey told the girls who nodded in agreement.

"You want us to take you home?" Caesar asked like the gentlemen he likes to think he is.

Hearing this made the girls burst out in laughter. The boys looked at each other strangely as they believed it was a general question, did they miss something?

"What did I miss?" Hiro asked.

"We go home on our own all the time, we're big girls. We drive and live together." Ming said as she held up a set of car keys.

"Just looking out for our workers." Caesar held his hands up in defense.

"Your ass is funny." Cindy laughed. "This shit finna be fun."

With that they all began to engage in small conversation as they made their way out of the room to make their way home but Huey and Jazmine held back.

"Please tell me you're not like him."

"I will never be like that dick." Huey reassured her and she nodded. She didn't need to slam another boss head into a desk but this one would probably fuck her up before she got the chance to.

"Good... here." She placed the keys Louis left behind in his large hands. They looked down at their hands as they held onto each other longer than necessary. "Keys to your club."

"Thanks."

"Let's go before the others start chatting shit." Jazmine laughed as she walked ahead of Huey.

Even in her jeans, Huey was amazed at her ass. He wanted to feel it on his lap again. He needed to.

'Best. Investment. Ever.' He thought before doing a light jog to catch up with the others.

* * *

**Ahh another chapter. I don't know about you but I am enjoying where this story is going. I am glad you all like the idea of gangster Huey and badass Jazmine because I am liking it too and this chapter shows a piece of it. BTW, I have just realised that my word has been spelling Caesar different so from now it will be the right spelling, I always get messed up with his name.**

**To Guest, I am glad you fuck with this concept heavy. Stay motherfucking tuned.**

**Bulmas Ego: Anything you say I get happy lool.**

**To all reviews: As I said before, stay motherfucking tuned because we gonna see more gangster shit.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	5. Chapter 5: Next Day

The next day came about and Jazmine woke up to the smell of breakfast.

The four girls have lived together for the past four and a half years. Jazmine and Cindy knew each other since first grade, Ming came along in 7th grade and then Royalty completed the group when she joined the same gymnastic club. Royalty was 11 while the rest were 13. It was kind of weird to have a younger girl being around them but she managed to grow on them and to be honest, they saw how Royalty could hold her own against anyone who tried it so knew she would fit right in.

Living together was the best thing that ever happened to them. They all had their own rooms, took responsibility and worked well together. They were attached by the hip and no one could get in the way. They protected each other. They were sisters.

Jazmine left her room and made her way into the kitchen where the rest of the girls were serving themselves to the food that was laid out for them to choose from.

"So, when was you hoes going to tell me there was food?" Jazmine faked being hurt as she grabbed some strawberries that were out.

"We knew your fat ass would smell that shit anyway." Cindy told her as she sat down at the table to eat her food.

"Whatever girl. Y'all are so rude." Jazmine collected her own plate of food and joined the table were everyone was sitting and digging into their own plates.

Ming then cleared her throat making the three look over at her.

"Thank you Minngg." They sighed at how extra she was.

"You're welcome." She smiled.

"So, we not going to talk about last night?" Cindy asked as she looked around to her other friends.

Last night was a very crazy night for them. They had a big night. Got their money stolen. Slammed their bosses head into a desk and now they have a new boss and let's not forget it is Freeman. A very big night.

"What's there to talk about?" Jazmine asked innocently.

"Bitch if you don't start talking." Cindy laughed as she threw a grape at her which she dodged.

"Fine, fine... last night was different. Can you believe that dick is gone?" Jazmine cheered.

"Yeess bitch! That motherfucker is gone!" Royalty began to dance in her seat which made the girls laugh. "But seriously. Did you see how quick he ran out? That shit was funny. If I knew all I had to do was slam his face into a desk would make him leave I would have done it a long time ago."

"For real though. You two were on some gangster shit." Ming told them.

"I know because you. Don't. Fuck. With. My. Mother. Fucking. Money." Royalty clapped her hands at every word which put emphasis on what she was saying.

"Word." Jazmine agreed as she stuffed another strawberry in her mouth. These were her favourite fruit.

"Now Miss Dubois and Miss Williams. Let's talk about you and your mans and not just any mans, they got the Freeman's." Cindy teased them making Jazmine roll her eyes but Royalty giggled.

"You know how I do. When I see something I want, I get it. That Riley is something that's for sure."

"We all know you're happy as fuck Royalty, what about you Jazzy?" Ming asked as she sipped her drink.

"There's nothing to talk about..." Jazmine began to look everywhere but at the girls staring back at her.

"You know that I know that you know that you're chatting a whole bunch of shit." Royalty finally caught Jazmine's eyes whose cheeks began to feel hot.

"Whatever. Huey is just... another guy with very deep pockets. He just so happened to be our manager now. The end." With that, Jazmine went to go wash up her plate which made the others follow.

"Which leads onto our next topic of things, Louis is gone and now we have them. What do you think they gonna do?" Cindy asked her friends.

"I have no idea. I know they have a nightclub but do they know how to run a strip club joint?" Jazmine asked.

"Who knows, I guess we will find out in the meeting today." Ming said to them.

It was 10am so they had a good amount of time before they had to go to the club.

"We need to go food shopping, we running low." Cindy said as she began to look around the kitchen.

"Alright, we can do grocery shopping then other shopping before going to the meeting." Jazmine told the girls. They all agreed and then went to get ready.

* * *

Huey was currently doing his morning work out, wearing only some shorts which allowed you to see the sweat dripping down his toned body. For some stupid reason he slept in longer today which never happens to him, his body was on a routine.

He was on his third rep of pull ups when he heard his notification go off on his phone saying someone was at his door. He lived in an apartment building that only consisted of 10 homes. If you haven't guessed it by now, he owned this. Him, his brother, Hiro and Caesar as well as a few other much trusted people lived here. Despite living in the same building, they all respected each others privacy.

He grabbed his phone and looked at the video that appears when his bell rings. He didn't hear it since he was blasting some music during his work out which he now paused.

"Huey! I know you in there. Come open the door."

Huey sighed, not really wanting visitors now but went to open the door anyway.

"Come in."

In walked one of Huey's long time friends. Her name was Raven and her and Huey grew up together. They lived in the same neighbourhood and their mothers were friends from high school. She gets compared to Gabriella Union ever since she was a teen mainly for her smile but Raven was more browner. Her and Huey went out when they were 15 and even lost their virginity to each other but broke up just after they hit 19. Since then they have remained close friends, even when Huey inherited the gang she joined much to his protest. At times, you could tell she might be feeling him again but Huey tried to keep their relationship at friends.

"What you need?" Huey asked as he grabbed a towel to wipe the sweat off him. Raven couldn't help but to stare and had to remember why she actually went to his house for.

"I heard you brought a strip club."

"So?"

Raven gave him a side eye. "So, I wanna know why the fuck you did that?"

Huey rolled his eyes as he grabbed a bottle of water from his fridge. "You know I'm a business man."

"I know you are Huey. I've know you since before I knew of my own existence. I'm saying why a strip club and why this one, you've been to plenty of other ones but have not shown any interest in them in the entertainment or business way." Raven explained to the boy.

She wasn't wrong. They have always been close and even when the broke up, they remained close friends since Huey valued her enough to keep her around. It would have been a bit awkward if they were no longer friends since their mothers regularly were together anyway. Also, the other strip clubs he was never too fussed over it. A little bit of him knew it had something to do with Emerald.

"Riley put in a good word for it and took us there last night. I saw potential so I took it."

"I hope you know what you're doing. I have enough problems with some female staff at the club trying to be all that, them hoes are going to be worse." Raven complained. Huey let her become the manager of his nightclub 'Empire' a few months after purchasing it and he was glad he made a right decision. She knew what she was doing and business was doing good.

"You can't be calling them hoes Raven. They're just people trying to make some money too, just different from us."

"Whatever nigga. We'll see what 'The Blue Moon' has to offer. I got shit to do, bye."

With that, she was gone, leaving Huey alone. He chose to go back to his work out but on the punching bag. He walked back to his home gym, wrapped his hands and went to work on the bag. Usually his mind would be blank but for some reason, it wasn't.

Emerald, wait, Jazmine was a girl he needed to find out more about because it was bugging him. He hated not knowing information about people. He only knew her stage name, real name and that she lives with her other friends who she happened to work with. He could tell they were very close. It reminded him of his own friendship but they all had their own space because he could only take so much of them at a time, especially when Caesar's smart mouth and Riley's wild streak come together, he didn't know how long he would survive with them both.

The little talk they had when everyone left, made Huey see her attitude and aura was completely different from when she gave him a dance and when she stormed into Louis office and kicked the shit out of him, which by the way was fucking hilarious to him. It almost made him burst out in laughter… almost.

Their first encounter was strictly business. She was there to get her money and leave and Huey could sense her lack of, dare he say, personality. Then when she came into the office, there was anger he didn't think she could own and it exploded into the room. When they were alone for those few seconds, it let him get a glance at who she really was. A sweet woman. He didn't know the reason why she began dancing but he knew it wasn't his business, for now at least.

Knowing he was not going to do a proper work out, he stopped and grabbed his phone to check if he had any notifications.

Seeing nothing come up, he decided to find work to do. He was going to call up different people to check on his supplies, businesses and even begin to draw up plans to renovate the strip club. Louis did a piss poor job and the club looked basic. Freeman's didn't do basic. So, he needed to find a way to improve the strip club in order to attract more customers who bring with them stacks of money.

Feeling pleased with his plan for the day before the first meeting at the strip club, Huey made his way towards his bathroom to get himself ready for today. This meeting was going to be something.

* * *

**A very basic chapter I know but I hope you still enjoyed it. Our favourite groups will come together next chapter. Also, who thought it was so hard to think of strip club name. You know how weird it felt to goggle that. As well as the fact that I be trying so hard not to add London slang into the way they talk because the bare minimum of people will understand. I be having to think of ways everyone will know. If you haven't heard of London slang, I suggest you go and find a few because it is very entertaining.**

**I am living for these reviews fr, I cannot thank you enough for all of them. What is annoying is that I get emails about the reviews but then when I go on my account it doesn't come up. I don't know what happens to it but don't think I don't see it because I do and I wanna say thank you to all.**

**This is my longest authors note so I am gonna quit because you've probably given up by now.**

**Until next time (hopefully soon, I have been out late nearly every day so I haven't gotten a chance to go on my laptop)**

**ANYWAY**

**-TBG**


	6. Chapter 6: The Meeting

Jazmine and the girls had just entered the club. Inside was the other strippers, bar staff and security. They were talking amongst themselves, wondering what was happening.

"Hey girls." One of the security guards greeted. His name was Tyler but people called him T-Dog. He was a muscular 6ft 4 black man who grew up in Chicago. He was really a sweetheart to the girls but anyone who stepped out of line, he wouldn't think twice about throwing them across the room.

"Hey T-Dog, how was your day?" Jazmine asked him as she shot him a smile.

"Just spending time with my son. He's growing up so quick, nearly 2 already." T-Dog smiled.

"Bless. He's so adorable." Cindy gushed over him.

"I know-"

"Its about time you guys come." They heard voice come up to them.

They turned their head to see one of the other strippers named Bunny. She was a white girl with short blonde hair and dull green eyes. She was older than these group of girls and worked there longer but no one respected her the way they respected the Gems which made her jealous and bitter towards the group.

"Whatever Rabbit." Royalty rolled her eyes as she walked towards the stage to sit.

"Its Bunny-"

"Its shut the fuck up." Royalty smirked when she saw the girls frustration on her face.

"Ugh."

"Any who!" Cotton interrupted. "Does anyone know what's happening?"

Carmen stepped up and pointed to the group of friends. "Don't you four know since you was the one to send us the text?"

"We don't know everythin-" Ming tried to say but then the door opened and four men came in.

"The club is closed. What are you...? Oh shit! If it isn't the Freeman boys, what up niggas?" T-Dog walked up to the brothers and greeted them.

"Sup T-Dog. Been a minute. How's little man?" Riley smiled. The rest of the staff was looking confused as to how they knew each other.

"He's good, so what you doing here?"

"Here for the meeting." Huey said. The door opened again and Raven walked through. "What are you doing here?"

"For the meeting. Let's see if you got your money's worth." She rolled her eyes as she stared down each girl. She pulled Huey down to her height to whisper in his ear. "These some dusty hoes."

Huey shook his head completely disagreeing. There were some good-looking girls here.

"Whatever." He walked in front of the room with all eyes on him. "My name is Huey Freeman. This is my brother Riley and Hiro and Caesar." He introduced. At each name the boys did a little sign so they knew who was who.

"Ok but what does that have to do with the club?" Bunny jumped in making Huey glare at her and she instantly regretted her out burst.

"Let him finish bitch gosh. So fucking impatient." Jazmine rolled her eyes but looked back at Huey who seemed a bit surprised that she spoke up.

"Thank you... Emerald." He decided to stick to her stage name while they were here. Raven saw the look that the two shared and for some reason she felt some type of jealously rise in her stomach.

"Now. What I was going to say before I was rudely interrupted..." He glared back at the blonde who coward away. "This is my club. I own this shit. You answer to me or one of these 3 behind me. I will be changing things around here since your old boss did a shit job."

"He wasn't that bad." Bunny rolled her eyes annoyed. Everyone was surprised she was still brave enough to talk.

"Yes he was bad, hoe. You were just fucking him so we know your ass ain't make good choices in your life." Royalty spat at her. Hearing that, made the boys realise it was the girl that ran out the room when they took over the club.

"Damn. If I was you, I wouldn't have that." Riley instigated with humour all over his face and voice. Riley and Royalty looked at each other. Their attraction for each other was still there and bubbling.

'We are defo fucking.' They both thought before zoning back to the conversation at hand.

"From the few times I have seen him I know he's a thief and dick and I will be nothing like him." Huey told the staff. When saying this, he looked straight into Jazmine's emerald eyes that was looking right into his own. "This place needs some fixing and I am going to start it asap. A new look is what this place needs, I know I can get more customers in here once I finish." He said more to himself. "Any questions?"

"So Louis would take 30% of our earning every week. How much would you be taking?" Carmen asked.

"He was taking 30% and you all still stayed?" He asked rhetorically and they all just struggled.

"Shiittt. We had to pay our bills somehow." Cindy spoke up and the other girls nodded.

"I will have to see after a while but I will most likely only take 15%" Huey told them which caused shocked and pleased facial expressions across the room.

"Yes I can finally send more money back home." Carmen said happily. She was going to enjoy this new boss.

"In the mean time, while the place is in works, we might need a few days off so you're welcome to work at my other club but you can't be going on the same way you do here. Its a night club not a strip club." Huey told them and hearing the news shocked Raven. She did not want these girls near her.

"Huey. When the fuck was we going to discuss this? We have enough whores to look after." Raven said annoyingly which angered a lot of the girls and before Huey could say anything, Jazmine walked slowly up to the dark-haired girl. They stood toe to toe, with barley a blink between them. Her girls were not far behind but let Jazmine handle it, knowing she was fully capable. Huey wanted to step in but something inside him wanted to see what is going to happen.

"Huey, you not going to-" Caesar tried to say but Huey held up his hand to stop him. Caesar sighed and stepped back, watching what was about to happen. He was surprised at Jazmine stepping up because Raven was not the one to play with.

"I may but a stripper but I am not a whore, I have more class than you will ever posses so get that shit right. I don't understand why you're saying anything at all, considering that Huey is the one in charge not your basic bitch self. He's running a business so why don't you take some fucking tips and sit the fuck down." Jazmine told her calmly.

'This girl is going to continue to surprise me.' Huey thought as he saw Raven's shaken face as much as she tried to hide it. It had been so long since another girl had stepped up to her.

"Whatever skank. You try some shit with me, I don't mind beating a bitch down." Raven looked Jazmine up and down before walking away. "I'll talk to you later Huey." She said as she walked past him and touched his arm then out the door.

"Well. That's the meeting over." Huey clapped and everyone besides the Gems and his people left the room to get ready for tonight.

"Fuck. After that I need a drink." Cindy laughed as she made her way towards to bar.

"On it." Ming hopped over the bar and began to create her special drink.

"I'm going to the bathroom." Royalty stood up and look at Riley seductively as she purposely moved her hips in his direction.

After less than one minute, Riley jumped up and disappeared in the same direction Royalty went, forgetting about his drink.

He was walking around in the back trying to find the girl but was caught off guard when he felt someone drag him into a small room.

"What the fuck?!" He shouted, ready to fight but kept his fists down when he saw Royalty giggling in front of him. "Girl you know I carry a fucking strap? You can't be scaring a real nigga like that." Riley told her as he flashed his pistol that was sitting on his waist.

"Whatever nigga. I know your ass felt my nails so you wouldn't buss no shots." She told him and he couldn't help but nod in agreement. "Forget that, I wanna feel a different type of gun."

"Don't have to ask me twice."

Their plumped lips slammed against each other and tongues got added into the mix within seconds. She wrapped her arms around his strong shoulder and he lift her up so her thick legs were around his waist. The continued until they felt they were warmed up and ready for. Riley then began to unbuckle his belt as Royalty prepared herself too.

* * *

In the main room, the others were casually talking and drinking while Huey was off on his own. He sat in the same area he did before, looking around the room. He took a sip of his drink which he had to admit, Ming hooked him up, he heard light footsteps next to him and then stopped and sat in the chair next to him.

"How you feeling after your first meeting?" Jazmine asked as she looked over at the man who seemed to be deep in thought. To everyone on the outside, he was a scary and dangerous gang leader who would not hesitate to hurt or even kill someone but to her, she saw something more.

"It is what it is. The white chick is really going to get on my nerves. If she carries on and doesn't do her job, she's gonna have to go."

"I won't be missing her, that's for sure." Jazmine laughed as she took a sip of her own drink. "What up with that girl that came in?" Jazmine asked annoyingly. The girl really rubbed her the wrong way from the moment she stepped in. She was all over Huey since she entered as if she was trying to show ownership over him. It didn't seem like they were together but Huey could do what he wanted. It's not like they were together let alone knew each other. Its barely been 24 hours since they met, even then, he knew her as 'Emerald' in the beginning.

Huey sighed. Raven was really a handful sometimes. "Her name is Raven. We've known each other since we were young. Dated for a while but didn't work out. We're friends as some would say and business partners. She can be a little... tough sometimes."

"Tough? I guess you haven't met me then. Trust me, I can handle her and so can my girls."

Huey gave her a slight nod, knowing he could take her word for it.

"What's your big plans big man?" She asked him and he turned to see her green eyes gazing right at him.

"Well, let's start with getting better lights and speakers. Its dark as fuck in here." Jazmine laughed again, as serious as he was, he was quite funny to her. Others may not see it but she did. "Just an overall new look."

"Can't wait. I know you will find a way to get this club popping." She shined a bright smile at him and he almost gave her one back.

"Hey, are we going to be here tomorrow night?" Cindy asked as she looked over at the two who seemed to be enjoying each other's company.

"No. I am going to start fixing this place. The quicker its done, the quicker I get my money." Huey told her. He may sound selfish but this is business. You never play with Huey's money; others have learned it the hard way.

"We got the whole day off girls." Cindy said but as she looked around the room to smile at all her friends, she finally notices someone was missing. "Um, where's Royalty?"

"Oh yeah that sneaky bitch." Jazmine laughed.

"Better yet, where's Riley?" Caesar questioned with a smirk on his face. Huey shook his head knowing exactly what he was doing. It was typical of the younger Freeman.

Just as they all looked around at each other, the two casually strolled in side by side with large smirks on their faces. They looked a little flustered but didn't care, they were adults, there was nothing to be childish about.

"You two done?" Huey asked. He felt like when your parents tell you to bring your younger siblings along but they just run off and do their own shit and you feel embarrassed. Yeah that's the feeling.

"Whatchu think nigga?" Riley licked his lips as Royalty walked past him over to the bar and stared at her as she walked.

"Whew the sexually tension is going through the roof right now." Ming shook her head at her little sister. The youngest was always the craziest.

"Oh! I got an idea." Cindy smiled mysteriously at the group of people.

"What you thinking about girl?" Caesar asked her.

"We should all hang out. Have some drinks and get to know each other."

"I think Royalty and Riley have done enough of that." Hiro shook his head at the two who nonchalantly took their drinks from Ming.

"That doesn't matter my friend. Who's house we going to?" Cindy asked.

"Girls are always welcome to my cribs. Why don't you give me your number and I will text you the address, come over at 8." The dread head looked over at the blonde who rolled her eyes but handed over her phone and he happily put his number in.

"We all might as well exchange numbers." Royalty said before reaching into Riley's pocket and pulled out his phone as if it was nothing.

"Damn you gotta stop grabbing me up like that. I told you I have a gun." Riley shook his head as he unlocked his phone so she could put in her number.

"I didn't remember agreeing to this." Huey said as he stood up to put his glass back.

"Come on Huey. Don't be so moody. We can have some fun." Jazmine bumped her hips against him but he barely budged.

"I hope I don't regret this..."

He really hopped he didn't.

* * *

**Loving all these reviews.**

**HotGurl: Do you mean do they all fuck each other orrr? Idk but if they have a mans over the others mind their business. When you have the right room mates, you will be able to live together, or so I hope. We done seen the first headbutt with the crew, who knows, there might be more.**

**Bulmas Ego: You know I always look forward to your reviews. Glad you enjoyed yourself so much you had to do a quick review on the last too lool. You know I appreciate it. Also, we know they all some bad bitches and boys as they should which they going to continue be in my story.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	7. Chapter 7: After Hours

The night had gone well and the girls got their money as normal. Huey, Riley, Caesar and Hiro floated around the club to help them think of what needs to be improved and also promoting their club, Empire, since The Blue Moon is going to be closed for a few days and it was his way of still getting his money. Huey had to remind Riley to not hover over Royalty, aka Diamond at the moment, because it was bad for business. It took a while for the boy to understand but he stepped back.

He looked around the room as the night began to wrap up. The few half naked girls were collecting their money from the lowkey horny men. He had to respect these women grind. They had to expose themselves and dance in front of all these thirsty men just to earn money. He may go to strip clubs but he wasn't lusting over them disgustingly like some men, which is why there is always security to kick those pervs out. He knew he could count on T-Dog to do so.

Now going by Jazmine, she walked out and waited for the rest of her people when Huey popped out of nowhere. He was looking extra good tonight. He wore a white shirt, black jeans and fresh white air forces with a gold chain hanging around his neck. It was so simple yet worked perfectly for him. She could even see a tattoo peering out but he began to talk to her which made her snap out of her gaze.

"You get enough money?" He asked her. He found it weird that he had just seen her with barley anything covering her skin and now she was in denim, Fashion Nova jeans and a simple black crop top and black trainers but still looked just as sexy. This proved you don't have to be naked to look good.

"Yeah, I guess. We had that bachelor party so we got a good amount from them. To think the man is going to get married, he was enjoying himself waaayyy too much." Jazmine laughed as she shook her head. She never understood why men went to strip clubs for their 'last night of freedom'. Why would you want another girl rubbing up on you when your soon to be wife is sitting at home? Either way, as long as she got her money, she didn't care what their home life was.

"Never understood that."

"You and me both. You excited for later?" Jazmine asked as she took a step closer to him.

'Hmm he smells good.' She thought. Why was she so easily pleased by this man? He kills people for a living, she should be scared to even be in his line of sight. So why wasn't she?

"No." He said simply.

"And why not Mr. Freeman?" She lightly shoved him pretending to be hurt.

"I don't like people."

"You don't like people?"

"I don't like people." Huey told her again simply.

Jazmine shook her head once again. This man was something else.

"How can you not like people? You like your brother-"

"I tolerate him." He cut her off making her laugh.

"You still have Hiro and Caesar... don't you like me?" She questioned him. This caught him off guard, he never thought she would ask such a forward question. The only other female that got straight to the point was Raven, more so when they were younger than now.

"Well. I cannot answer that question as of yet." He told her with a very blank expression which she couldn't argue with, it made sense.

"Don't worry, you're love me eventually."

"Hm. We'll see."

Just then, Cindy, Royalty and Ming all walked out and looking very tired.

"Ugh. I can't wait to get in my bed, I need to sleep." Ming yawned which triggered more yawns around the room.

"Right. Anyway, we'll see you later boss." Cindy mocked saluted and the girls made their way out of the club, leaving Huey shaking his head at them.

* * *

As the four made their way to their car, they could hear loud, presumably drunk, men. They looked across to see about 8 white men laughing, singing and overall making noise.

"Aren't they the ones from the bachelor party tonight?" Royalty asked.

"Yeah they are. Let's go before they-"

"Oi! Look it's the Gems! Maybe they can give us a little private show!" One of the men shouted and pointed to their direction.

"-recognise us…" Jazmine slammed her hand in her face. She spoke too soon. "Our night is over boys! Get home safe." She tried to say but within seconds they were blocking their pathway.

"My how you all so sexy. I preferred what you were wearing earlier, right boys." One said which made the others laugh.

"Too bad. Bye." Cindy tried to shove past them but they pushed her back. "Don't fucking touch me you dick!" Cindy was ready to rip off two different types of heads tonight.

"You ungrateful bitches! I gave you how much money tonight and this is how you repay us?" Now the guys face was turning red.

"We don't owe you shit. Move!" Royalty glared at them so hard that some began to fidget in their place but still didn't move.

As they went to push past them again, the men grabbed onto the girls who was now fighting them off like crazy.

"What the fuck is going on here?!" They heard a voice shout from behind the girls. They turned to see Huey standing their fuming.

"None of your fucking business!" One of the men shouted.

"It is my fucking business. Let them go." Huey's face was in a deep scowl which kind of scared the girls. Now they knew why the streets feared him.

"And what you going to do about it?"

"You don't wanna know."

Next thing they knew, there was a full blown fight in the middle of the street. The girls felt like they should jump in or at least go and get help but they were mesmerised by Huey fighting. He threw the men from the bachelor party around like they were nothing and it was amazing to witness the one and only leader of The Panthers, Huey Freeman in action.

They didn't have to worry about Huey being on his own because Hiro, Caesar and Riley all ran over a few seconds later and jumped in without question. They had two guys each. You could see the different fighting styles for each person.

Hiro was more on his defence but always found their weakness to gain the upper hand. Caesar and Riley were on some straight street shit, throwing punches left right and centre. Then there was Huey. He was effortlessly throwing punches and kicks which showed off just a tiny amount of his years of martial arts training.

A guy threw a punch at Hiro who ducked under it and the man landed straight into Riley and Caesar's fist. The final blow came from Huey's foot which sent him flying across the parking lot. The man did not move.

That was only one thing the girls could catch, everything happened so quickly, they barely had time to memories everything. They stood there staring in shook at how the drunk men continued to try and fight despite them clearly not having the upper hand.

There was one left. Huey looked him dead in the eye before serving a perfect roundhouse kick straight to the chest which sent him crumbling to the floor.

Everything was silent. The Freeman's, Hiro and Caesar all stood over their moaning opponents, looking at them like the piece of shits they were. They got broken out their thoughts by the slow clapping coming from the side.

"Remind me not to get on your bad side." Jazmine laughed as they looked at the scene before them.

"Damn. You cannot tell me they didn't look sexy doing it." Royalty licked her lips as she looked over at Riley's direction who immediately broke out into a wide, cheeky grin as if he was 8.

"Don't be teasing a nigga like that girl. You trying to fuck again?" He asked her before taking a step closer to her. It was obvious they didn't care they had company.

Huey looked over at his brother in disgust. "No Riley. We're going home. We got shit to do tomorrow."

"Huey really out here cockblocking." Caesar shook his head and this made the rest of them laugh.

"Nigga you so fucking gay. I'm trying to get fucked again and you acting like a lil bitch. I'm grown!" Riley turned back to Royalty who still had a seductive smile on her face. "You coming home with me tonight." He grabbed onto her and started to speed walk towards his black BMW, not even looking back.

"Don't wait up! Just bring me a bag when we meet at Caesar's if you don't hear from me!" Royalty called back before waving to the group who just watched in shock.

"Um what the actual fuck just happened? I need to go bed because too much shit has happened. Got grabbed up by some drunk dicks, y'all fucked them up, which was amazing by the way. Now Royalty out fucking again. I swear we need to get a leash on that bitch." Jazmine shook her head and gave an attempt to run her hand through her hair but the thickness didn't allow it.

"You're telling me. See the kind of shit I had to grow up with." Huey looked at where his brothers car once was. "We've been here long enough, lets go."

As they began to walk to their cars, Huey stopped Jazmine while the others engaged in one last, causal conversation. It seems like every time their friends broke off, they would try and catch the other.

"Are you okay?" Huey asked. Despite his straight face, Jazmine could see the concern.

"Yes Huey, I'm fine. Thank you."

"No problem." He nodded.

"You was crazy good as well. Kicked the shit out of them as if they weren't shit. I wish I knew how to fight as good as you so you didn't have to be my knight in shinning armour." Jazmine laughed.

"Years of practice…" Huey paused for a moment, wondering if he should ask his next question. "I can teach you some time. If you want to that is." He looked down at her gems for eyes that began to glistening in the moonlight. He was so deep in her gaze, he was finding it hard to get out of them.

"I would like that…" Jazmine softly said as she stared into his hard-maroon eyes. She knew he had a soft side. She wanted to find it.

They were cut off by the sound of a car horn and they turned in the direction of their remainder of friends waiting with them, cars ready.

"Umm Jazmine. Unless you're going to run off with Mr. Black Belt here, I suggest you get your pretty little light skin ass in this car. A bitch is tired!" Cindy called out from the passage seat.

"You know my ass is not small bitch!" Jazmine shouted at her friend. She turned to face Huey again. "I guess I gotta leave now. Impatient bitches. See you tomorrow." With that, Jazmine did a light jog and jumped in the car and off she went down the street.

'Yeah, her ass is defiantly not small.' He thought before he heard Hiro start talking and turned to look at him.

"Huey. Can we go now? All you and Jazmine do is talk so much when we wanna go." Hiro complained.

"Hiro don't be like that. We all know Huey is feeling Jazmine just as much as Riley is feeling Royalty-"

"They're fucking-"

"The point is." Caesar continued after being interrupted by his afro wearing friend. "We can see you're catching feelings. Its ok to be in love a stripper. Tyga did it with Blac Chyna. Wiz Khalifa did it with Amber Rose. They both got kids out of them! Shiittt T-Pain made a whole song about it."

"Get to your point Michael." Huey said frustratingly, making their Asian friend laugh. He just wanted to go home.

"I would get to it if you didn't keep interrupting me… you don't have to worry about her being a stripper. Not even going to lie, I'm trying to see what Cindy trying to do and I know little Hiro here feeling Ming."

"Please don't bring me into this."

"Whatever man. You two are so tight. Just live a little. Fuck." Caesar ended his rant and got into his car to finally drive home.

Huey let out a much-needed sigh and got into his own new black Mercedes and drove away from the club. Caesar knew how to get under his skin just as much as Riley could. What made Huey more annoyed was that whenever it came to girls, Caesar was always right. It's like he could do voodoo or some shit. He could predict anything.

Was Huey really beginning to feel Jazmine? Did she even feel the same way? It was too early to tell. They just met; they barely knew each other… but he would be lying if he said he wasn't interested in learning more about her.

He tried to tell himself it was because he didn't know her and he always felt uncomfortable if he didn't know a good amount of details on someone before trusting them the tiniest bit. Raven was the only girl he was with that lasted long enough for him to claim it was a relationship. She was everything he saw himself with. A strong, independent black girl who was beautiful and caring but at the end of the relationship, he just didn't feel the same. Everything became predictable. He personally felt they were just friends who just happened to fuck all the time. They did have their fun times but he needed something different and she felt similar too.

Now there was Jazmine. He needed to find out more about her. He just had to. It would annoy him if he didn't.

Maybe this get together wasn't such a bad idea after all…

* * *

**Yet another chapter. I'm sorry if the fight scene seemed a bit...eh, I will have to work on that.**

**Thank you for all these positive reviews, it really makes my day reading these, I see every single one. Ever time I see a new one I start adding pieces in. I've just had no time to myself to post more regularly like I used to with my other stories so its going to take a while but I will get there.**

**Next chapter, they shall all get together and have some fun, hopefully it can all go smoothly.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	8. Chapter 8: Drink & Chill Part 1

Riley let out a groan as he tried to stretch his limbs but was stopped when he felt his arm under a heavy object.

"What the...?" He questioned but when he looked down, he saw a lump of hair on his chest. That's when last night's events made Riley smirk, it was so wild Riley had to tap out, he didn't know if he could go any further.

'Ah shit. I need to piss.' Riley cursed. How was he supposed to move when she was sleeping on him? He looked down at her sleeping form. Her arm was wrapped around his torso and her leg was draped around his leg.

'She still looks good though.' Riley thought but he quickly tuned those thoughts out because his arm was beginning to die and he needed to go toilet badly. He slowly but carefully removed himself from her. As soon as he stood up, she made herself very comfortable in his bed. Usually he would wake their ass up to get out his crib but he wasn't bothered this time strangely. After he finished going to the bathroom, he walked back into his room only to jump and scream.

"Your ass just loves to scare me man. Fuck." Riley ran his hand over his face as he made his way back in the bed.

Royalty had woken up and was staring right at Riley which he never expected. Hearing the gangster react the way he did made her burst out in laughter.

"Not my fault you're a bitch."

"I'm not a bitch. I'm a real ass nigga. Riley motherfucking Escobar Freeman."

"Ugh you're so annoying. Lemme text my girls so they know you didn't kill me. It's after 1 already." Royalty said as she grabbed her phone.

"Wow. If I wanted to kill you, your ass would have been stashed away already and the only thing I have been killing is that pussy so lemme get another round." Riley climbed on top of her and put her phone back on the side. They began kissing and since they were both naked, it was easier to get back into action.

* * *

The day went by and the girls were getting ready for their little get together. It was 7:50 and it will take them around 15 minutes to get to Caesar's.

Cindy had straightened her hair and had on a Lakers vest, ripped jeans and some purple Jordan's. Cindy was the number one basketball player in Woodcrest which was where the girls lived before moving. She was a force to be reckoned with. Even now if you challenge her to a game, she would be able to wipe the floor with you with no hesitation.

Ming curled her hair, had grey jeans, vans and a white Champion top. Jazmine had on black ripped jean shorts that came up to her knees, a camo crop top and black Converse's. She styled her hair so it was half up half down with all her curls defined. It took her ages to do but she did it.

"Can we just deep that we left Roy Roy with a random ass, drug dealer, killer?" Cindy questioned as she took a few pictures of herself on her phone.

"Wasn't you the one that got us going to these random ass, drug dealer, killers house?" Ming turned to her with an eyebrow raised.

Cindy opened her mouth but didn't say nothing which made Jazmine laugh. "You know what." She pointed towards Ming. "Imma hurt you next time you try to be smart."

"Whatever girl. I see you trying it with Caesar."

"And if I was?"

"Nothing. Look where Royalty is." Ming shrugged. "Also, we know Jazmine and the leader are going to be together soon anyway."

"Umm let's not start on me please. You're both jumping to conclusions way too quick there." Jazmine said as she grabbed the car keys and clothes for Royalty.

"You'll see bitch. Can't be in denial the whole time." Cindy told them and they made their way towards their car, making their way to their little get together.

* * *

Huey was at Caesar's house and had just finished helping him set up. They had different bottles of drinks since they didn't know what kind of drinks the girls liked, a few snacks and music playing in the background. As a gang leader, he barely had time to himself, it was always business for him. Someone always needed him. He made it his duty to make sure his people were taken care of so when they asked for his help, he was there, especially when it came to his younger ones. That's probably why people respected him so much. So today was his time of having a little relaxation even though he was against it at first but he couldn't say no to Caesar. Caesar was a very persuasive person and could get anyone to do anything with just a few words.

Now back to these girls. He had no idea what Caesar was up to. They had known each other for like three days and already they were in their lives more than he expected. Sure, he knew that he would see them when he was working but outside of work was different. His brother was already fucking one already for goodness sake. Riley had always been a fast one since he was a teen so it should be something he was used to seeing but he has never seen a girl stay the whole day like Royalty did. Huey would see girls doing the walk of shame in the early hours when he was doing his morning workout.

"Ay yo Huey. Cindy just text me saying they just dropped clothes off at Riley's and are coming down now." Caesar told him. He had on jean shorts with white air forces and a white tee. Huey was wearing all black. Black jeans, Jordan's and Wu-Tang Clan top.

"Where's Hiro?" Huey asked and just as he said that, there was a knock at the door. When Caesar went to open it, in walked Hiro sporting a red Black Pyramid top, black ripped jeans and some red Louis Vuitton's.

"Damn did you hear us talking or some shit. What kind of devil ears do you have?" Caesar laughed as he greeted Hiro in.

"Aw you two talking about me."

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves."

"You know you love me... Where's the girls at?" Hiro asked. Suddenly, there was another knock at the door.

"What is with you both mentioning people and they come. You wanna ask where Rihanna is now?" Caesar joked but was also very serious, as he went to open the door. "Helllooo ladiieess." He said as he saw the women of the night in front of him.

"You can't greet your nigga too?" Huey heard Riley's voice as he walked in with his hand around Royalty's waist.

Riley had his own Michael Jordan's jersey, black jean shorts and some red and black Retro 1 trainers. Royalty wore a neon pink playsuit with matching Nike Air Max's.

"Why do I care about you when there's four sexy ladies that just walked in." Caesar told him as they walked further into his living room where Huey and Hiro were waiting, Caesar watching them as they walked in.

"Hey Hiro, Hi Huey." Jazmine waved at Hiro but pulled Huey into a quick hug which caught him off guard.

"Umm hi." He said nervously.

"Why everyone so quiet? Come on! We turning up tonight!" Cindy shouted as she walked in and pick up a bottle of Cîroc.

"See that's what I'm talking about. Pick your poison." Caesar stretched out his arms as a way of showing the girls they are welcome to have what they like and went over to grab himself a drink.

After that, they all began to pour their own drinks and sit around. Huey was on his own as always before Jazmine moved to sit next to him. Whenever she sees him alone, she feels as if she needs to go and entertain him even though he seemed fine on his own. She was the type of person that hated when people were on their own, that's how she made a lot of her old friends. She felt every deserved a friend or at least someone to talk to and she was happy to be that person.

"So, your brother and my sister seem very fond of each other." Jazmine smirked as she sipped her drink.

"You could say that." He said as he looked over at the two who were rapping along to a Lil Wayne song playing.

"They are actually so cute. They seem a lot alike." She told him and he just nodded his head. "You know if I'm boring you, I can just go-"

"It's not you. It's just I'm used to talking about business rather than having small talk. Its been a while." He told her and she understood what he meant. A man like him doesn't have time to have a casually conversation, he has a gang and clubs to run.

"Thank fuck. I thought I was boring you to death." She laughed causing Huey to let out a small smirk. "Aw your smile is so cute."

Hearing this made Huey immediately go back into his neutral facial expression. "I don't smile."

"Well whatever you just did you need to do it more because it is so adorable." Jazmine told him and even added a little baby voice at the end but before Huey could reply, Caesar stood in the middle of the room to address everyone.

"Alright ladies and gentlemen. I believe it's time we play a little game."

"Hell yeah nigga that's what I'm talking bout." Riley cheered as he made his way towards the couch with the others following.

"What are we, 16?" Huey asked sarcastically as he poured himself another drink.

"Stop being so Huey, Huey. Lighten up and have fun. Matter of fact, have some more liquor, we know you loosen up with some drinks." Caesar pointed to him. Huey shook his head but indeed took a sip of his drink.

"Tell us the game then." Ming rushed him as she felt the Vodka running through her veins.

"Don't rush me girl. Give me time." Caesar grabbed a bottle Hennessy and poured it into eight shot glasses. "Now, I brought you all here so we can get to know each other since we're going to see each other a lot. So I thought we could play a little truth or dare. If you don't answer the question or do the dare then you have to take a shot. Whoever takes the least shots win." Caesar smirked as he sat next to Hiro.

"I know imma win anyway." Cindy clapped her hand together and stuck out her tongue cheekily.

"I can't believe we are playing this stupid game." Huey mumbled which meant only Jazmine heard and that caused her to giggle.

"Huey. Lighten up. It should be fun." Jazmine slightly nudged him as she looked over at him with her big green eyes. Looking into her eyes made Huey feel warm inside which was a weird feeling for this gangster to feel.

'Must be the liquor talking.' He pushed to the back of his head as he tuned into the game that he thought was very childish.

"Since Cindy is hyper to start. Cindy. Truth or dare?" Caesar grinned at her.

"Dare. I ain't no punk bitch." She smirked.

"I dare you to motorboat Jazmine." Caesar grabbed a Twizzler and took a small bite out of it as he saw some of the shocked looks around the room.

"Bloodclaut, we jumping in deep already." Royalty said as her Jamaican accent popped through which made Caesar ears perk up.

"You from Jamaica?"

"Yup. St Catherine baby."

"Shit my family from there too. We might be related."

"Maybe. You know Jamaicans always know each other."

"Ok, family reunion done. We going to do this dare or not?" Cindy asked impatiently. She just wanted to play the game.

"Relax Cin. You're too excited for this." Jazmine shook her head at her friend. She was weird.

"I guess we getting some action tonight." Hiro laughed.

Cindy laughed before going over to Jazmine and sitting on her knees. Jazmine rolled her eyes but moved forward so Cindy could lean into her chest.

"How long does she have to do this for?" Jazmine asked annoyingly.

"10 seconds." Caesar said as he continued to eat his candy.

Jazmine wanted to hide but knew she couldn't run. Cindy moved towards her chest, placed her face in her cleavage and began to shake her head. Jazmine closed her eyes; she felt her face get hot and red from all the eyes that was watching her. She would never expect her longtime friend, well sister, to be doing this to her.

Huey was watching the blonde motorboat the strawberry blonde whose face was about to match her hair. It always made him laugh at how embarrassed she looked. Her nose was scrunched up in a way he had to admit made her look cute.

'Nope. Nope. It's the liquor. Stop it Freeman!" He lectured himself as Cindy finally stopped and moved away from Jazmine's chest and back to her seat next to Caesar.

"It's getting freaky up in here." Riley laughed as he subconsciously moved Royalty closer to him. They had spent the day together and gotten to know more about who Riley Freeman and Royalty William was so now they were quite comfortable with each other as they were resting on each other. They didn't know this was all going to happen but they were enjoying it.

"I guess it's my turn." Cindy said as she settled back into her seat as if nothing happened. "Hiro. Truth or dare."

"Truth."

"Boo! Nigga you boring." Riley taunted.

"Leave him. How old was you when you lost your virginity?"

"17."

"Weak!" Riley shouted again.

"Riley stop being mean." Royalty lightly slapped him on his chest.

"He late."

"Not everyone is a man whore like you Riley." Huey told his brother.

"Ohhhh." Everyone in the room said as they looked between the brothers.

"Whatever nigga. Next!"

Huey shook his head at his younger brother. He had no idea how they both have the same parents.

"Royalty. Truth or dare?" Hiro asked her.

"Dare."

"I dare you to drink whatever Riley makes from the fridge." Hiro smirked as he saw the horrid look on her face.

"Fuck that shit." Royalty said as she grabbed a shot and downed it as if it was nothing.

"Booooooo!"

"Be quiet. Anyway, since you wanna be impatient. Truth or dare?" Royalty asked to Riley as she refilled her shot.

"Dare bitc-" He began to say but when he saw the death stare, he changed what he was saying. "I mean Royalty." Hearing how quick Riley changed his words made Hiro and Caesar laugh (Huey just let out a quiet snort) because no female could tell him anything but it seems like he has finally met his match that didn't take shit from no one, not even someone they were sleeping with.

"I dare you to text your last ex-girlfriend saying you were thinking about them and wanted to get back together... if they reply within 2 minutes you have to ask for nudes. If they send, you win something we can discuss later. If they don't, you take a shot." Royalty smirked at him and he smirked right back.

"First of all, I don't do girlfriends. I fuck hoes." Another look from Royalty. "Not that you a hoe or anything, I mean, you see. Fuck it. Imma do it and win anyway." Riley stopped himself before he got slapped by Royalty again. He knew if he continued talking he would dig himself into a deeper hole.

Riley pulled out his phone and began typing away as the other waited patiently. A few seconds later, he puts his phone down.

"Alright my turn. Miss Mariah! Truth or dare?" Riley called out.

"Oh no. Don't let me regret this... dare."

Riley heard the word dare and instantly got excited. He was going to have fun with this.

"I dare you... to make out with Huey."

* * *

**It has been sooooo long since I have posted. I have not had time to write anything at all because every minute, I have been dragged out the house which is why I gave you all a long chapter. Hopefully I can go back to regularly updates. Part two coming soon.**

**Make sure you leave reviews, loving them all.**

**Until next ****time**

**-TBG**


	9. Chapter 9: Drink & Chill Part 2

"I'm sorry, what did you just say?" Jazmine asked.

Riley had just told Jazmine to kiss his brother which caused excitement within the group but Jazmine turned red. This made Huey wonder how many times this one girl was going to turn red in one night.

"Come on Jazz. Its only fun." Royalty told her. "If he's anything like this one, it will be worth it." She winked at her and Riley was glad that Royalty was gloating about his skills by the way he grinned down at her.

"Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!" Ming, Cindy and Caesar chanted as if they were in a school's cafeteria.

Even though Jazmine could take a shot, it wouldn't be as fun, they wanted her to loosen up and enjoy herself she might as well play into the games.

"Wow. You all are great friends. Look at all this peer pressure." Jazmine rolled her eyes. She turned towards Huey who just watched her.

"You going to do it or not?" He questioned her as he watched her eyes shift around and look anywhere else but at him.

Jazmine sighed. She didn't mind tasting those juicy lips so she might as well try it now.

She slowly leaned in, scared he might pull away and scream that her breath stinks or something of that nature. She hasn't felt this nervous to kiss someone since she was 15 and had her first kiss with her first boyfriend. Jazmine back then was kind of quiet and innocent, she would never see herself here ten years later. A stripper hanging out with a large dangerous gang. She could feel her parents lecture in her head.

'Oh shit we meant to be kissing.' Jazmine pulled herself back into reality and saw Huey waiting in front of her. Suddenly, she crashed her lips against his. The group of friends began to cheer but the two drowned it out as they locked lips. Jazmine was surprised at how well he kissed. Yeah, he was a good-looking man but he seemed very to himself. He didn't seem as if he was open to just kiss or sleep with any random woman like her.

The kiss started off desperate as she wanted to get it over and done with but now it seemed as if they both had gotten very much into the kissing by the way they slowed down to allow each other to feel every area of their lips. Jazmine felt him begin to suck on her bottom lip which made her have to stop a moan from slipping out, she didn't want him to get too cocky by making her moan from a kiss. She moved her hand onto his check while the tips of her bright nails slowly stroked his hair. She was glad she didn't take any shots.

Huey was feeling the same way. Her equally juicy lips was feeling good on his own and in his mouth, which is why he couldn't help himself when he began to suck on it. Huey felt her hand on his face so decided to put his own large hand on her hip. It had been a long time since he had felt these hips and he hated to say that he missed it. It just felt so... right in his hands. It was the perfect fit.

Forgetting they need to breath, the two slowly but barley parted lips. The cool air hit their wet lips as they stared into each other's eyes, with not one word being spoken. Whenever Huey looked at Jazmine, he couldn't help but mention her eyes every time. It was probably one of the most beautiful set of eyes he had ever seen. Her eyes were her trademark qualities that it even made her stripper name. Emerald. A deep emerald. Emerald green. The Wizard of Oz doesn't have shit on her eyes.

"Umm is y'all going to fuck in front of us now or what? Because if I wanna watch porn I'll just go upstairs and also a nigga don't want see my gay ass brother fucking. That shits gay." Riley scrunched up his nose in disgust as he looked towards Jazmine and Huey who just finished making out. He now regretted picking that dare as it felt like punishment to him.

"Shut up Riley. You chose the dare." Huey told his brother as he cheekily whipped his bottom lip with his thumb and leaned back into the chair with his arm now around the back of the chair, behind Jazmine's head. Jazmine could see the ghost of a smirk on his lips but he didn't let it show this time.

Jazmine didn't know how Huey was so casual with what just happened. They just made out in front of everyone! Even his own brother! But no, he did not care. Jazmine was so into the kiss; she could feel the puddle in her panties.

'Wow I haven't had sex in so long, a kiss is really getting me this wet?' She questioned herself as she tried to cool down her body temperature.

"Yeah but not so fucking long man. Shit. I have never had my dick feel so soft since Two Girls One Cup." Huey had never seen his brother look so traumatized since the time they walked into their grandfather having a threesome. The man may be old but he still manages to get women which was something that always confused them.

"Moving on..." Cindy said with an equally disgusted face. "Jazmine it's your go."

Jazmine took a deep breath trying her best to composer herself. She could feel the warmth coming from Huey who now seemed closer to her.

'Snap out of it!' Jazmine mentally slapped herself and then brought herself back to her surroundings.

"Alright let's see who the next victim is..." Jazmine looked around the room, the only people left that haven't been chosen were Ming, Caesar and Huey. She decided to do an easy one since she was still flustered by Huey's kiss. He must have slipped a drug into her mouth because she was feeling different.

"Huey. Truth or-?"

"She text back!" Jazmine was cut off by Riley jumping up with his phone in his hand.

"What she say?" Ming asked excitingly.

"She said: I miss you too. I was thinking about your dick today, my new man just can't fuck me the way you used to do me. Should I come over tonight? I can be there within an hour once this nigga goes to sleep." Riley read out loud causing everyone to laugh.

"She thirsty as fuck. Got a whole man at home but wanna fuck a next dude." Cindy shook her head as she leaned forward to see what would happen next.

"Well that's part one of the dare. Part two coming up." Hiro said excitedly. He was sad to say he wanted to see what happened next.

"Alright alright... sendinnggg now." Riley announced. "Damn she already opened it. And would you look at that... a nigga got the nudes!"

"Oh shit you for real? Lemme see." Caesar jumped up and grabbed Riley's phone before he could react. "Wait... I remember this girl. I did her too!" He cheered as the two jumped up in celebration much to the girl's disgust.

"You know what men are?" Cindy started off. "Trash!" The rest of the girls shouted along.

Riley turned to Royalty. "Girl you the one who told me to send that shit. Let's not forget I won so give me my prize."

"Hm mm. You'll get it later. Trifling ass." Royalty mumbles the last bit as she picked up her drink to stop her from saying anything else.

"Okay... Truth or dare Huey?" Jazmine redirected everyone back to the game at hand.

"Truth." He said simply. He could see her bottom lip was plumped and pink from him sucking on it, leaving him with no regret.

"Booooo!" Riley once again called out from his place.

"Nigga you going to do that shit all night?" Caesar asked as Hiro shook his head in embarrassment while the girls just laughed.

"Yeah yeah yeah. Play the fucking game. Y'all boring."

"Riley can you stop interrupting people. What are you, eight?" Jazmine turned to him, which caused Huey to snort at Riley's offended facial expression. Jazmine then looked back at Huey. "Do you have any regrets?"

"Woah, we getting deep up in this bitch now." Royalty commented as she picked up a handful of Skittles.

"No." He replied with no explanation even though she was hoping he would elaborate.

'I'll get him to talk later.' She thought because she saw an almost invisible twitch of his eyebrow which she guessed meant he was lying. She turned her attention back to the room when she heard Caesar answer dare from Huey asking him the question.

"I dare you to suck Riley's toes." Huey smirked at the sickened face from Riley and Caesar.

"What the fuck?! Nigga you best drink that shit I am not letting you touch me with your gay ass, fuck this shit. Nigga fuck is wrong with you?!" Riley ripped into Huey as he moved further away from Caesar.

"Yeah Huey... your ass is messed up for that... I ain't no punk but I am not touching any niggas toes." Caesar said as he grabbed two shots and took one after the other. He was definitely against that. "Anyway, I might as well go to the only person that hasn't been asked anything... Ming. Truth or dare."

"Dare."

"I dare you to give my boy Hiro here a lap dance." Caesar smirked as he saw his friends embarrassed look.

"I'm gonna have to take a shot on that because I do my lap dances in private." Ming flicked her hair over her shoulder as she leaned forward to take her shot of Hennessy. As she did, she looked directly into Hiro's eyes which made his mouth hang open at the intense eye contact.

"Alright let's do the next round of-" Caesar was cut off by Huey's phone ringing.

"It's Raven." He announced as he stood up to answer it. Jazmine was annoyed that Raven decided to call now of all times when the game was getting more interesting (she was kind of hoping she could kiss Huey again but decided to keep it to herself) but knew she couldn't say anything. They all sat around watching Huey when they suddenly got hit with a wave of screaming over the phone.

"The fuck she screaming for?" Riley mumbled as he stood up too.

"Wait, Raven slow down. What do you mea- where are you?" Huey turned to look over at Riley, Caesar and Hiro that all looked ready to jump into action while the girls nervously sat around.

"What is happening?" Ming was the first to ask something as they saw the angered look on Huey's face that scared them.

"Say the word bro." Riley told him but Huey held up his hand to stop Riley from continuing as he listened to Raven.

"Raven. Raven. Just get here now. Meet us in the infirmary. We'll be down." Huey said as he hung up the phone. Huey pulled out his gun and almost instantly, the others did too. The girls slowly stood up and huddled together.

"What's going on? Huey, what's happening?" Jazmine asked looking him directly in his now hard, dark black eyes.

"Mikey and Mateo got shot. Those fucking Russians are pissing me off. They're getting too comfortable in our city. Raven is two minutes away. Caesar, call Alex and get him to meet us downstairs. As soon as we get those boys sorted, we're holding a meeting asap. These motherfuckers have to be stopped." Huey said angrily. Caesar was already on the phone talking to who they guessed was Alex as they all moved towards the door, completely forgetting about their guests.

Seeing Huey take on the leadership role was a small turn on for Jazmine but she had to remember it was because two of his people's lives are on the line. It would be the wrong and worse time to make a move.

"They're here and Alex is down there already let's go." Hiro informed his leader as they made their way towards to the door but Huey stopped when he remembered the girls.

"You four stay here. The home is secure, if you need us, you have our numbers. Stay away from the windows and doors. Don't move, we'll be back." Huey told them with no emotion behind the words. They could see he was in gang leader mode.

"No. We're coming with you. We can help." Jazmine ran up to him with determination written all over her face.

Huey was conflicted but he had no time to argue. He was needed and needed right now.

"Fine. Just stay close." Huey told them reluctantly and the eight new group of friends ran downstairs to the infirmary.

* * *

**Well hopefully I didn't keep you waiting for the next chapter too long. Here's part 2, make sure you tell me what you think.**

**-TBG**


	10. Chapter 10: Wounds and Pictures

Huey took the lead as he ran down the stairs. They could've taken the elevator but that was time-wasting. He did not have time to waste. He could hear the stamped of footsteps behind him and not one was slow, they all were keeping up. He didn't know why he allowed the girls to come. They didn't need to see these kind of things. Not everyone was made out for the gang lifestyle, Huey knew he was because he was raised around it and that's all he knew. Him and Riley.

They finally reached the infirmary to find the two boys already lying on two beds with blood seeping through their shirts. Raven ran over to him with blood coating her hands.

"Huey. I tired my best to stop the bleeding but it was so much. I managed to get the bastard that shot at us. He's unconscious in the trunk." Raven informs him. Her eyes finally fell to the people behind the tall man and she felt a wave of anger as she saw the same group of girls from the strip club. "You have got to be fucking kidding me Huey-"

"I don't have time for your shit. Get cleaned up." Huey told her with hard eyes as he ran over to help Alex. Raven took another look at the people around the room before walking out knowing she couldn't argue with her boss especially with the situation at hand.

"Gun shot wound to the abdomen and a gun shot wound to the hamstring. You know what to do." Alex announced to Huey. Alex was a small but quite muscular mixed male with curly brown hair and brown eyes. He's been the gangs doctor for only 3 years now and Huey would always make sure Alex taught the members basic medical things if they were too far to get to him.

Jazmine watched the scene before her. Two young boys lying on a bed. One unconscious, the other losing their consciousness. Huey was putting pressure on the leg wound while Alex worked to remove the bullet from the abdomen wound.

"Hiro, Caesar and Riley. I need you to inform people of an emergency meeting within the next hour and a half. Tell them to stay alert on their way to the warehouse." Huey instructed them and they nodded along in agreement.

"We'll come with you." Cindy told them as her and Ming looked at them.

"Be careful." Jazmine told her sisters. They all gave each other a quick hug before watching them run out the room following the boys.

"Are you two girls going to stand there or are you going to help?" Alex said annoyingly as he continued his work. He was already covered in blood.

"Alex. Don't." Huey told him.

"Fine. I need A positive blood and B negative blood." Alex said as pointed over to what looked like a large fridge which they guessed contained blood. It was weird but they guessed it was useful for times like this.

"I have A positive blood." Royalty told him.

"And I have O positive. It can be used for anyone."

Alex shook his head. "I would take it but we don't have time. I need to stop the bleeding and give them more blood now." He told them. The girls nodded before running over and grabbing the bags of blood. Royalty ran over to Alex and Jazmine ran over to Huey.

"The bullet went straight through which is good." Huey said as he watched Jazmine expertly set up the blood drip.

Seeing Huey's questioning look, she answered him before he had to ask. "We actually wanted to be doctor a long time ago so we would spend a looooot of time watching documentaries and shows. Oh and studying too."

'Lets just hope it all pays off.' She nervously thought as she began to thread the needle used to close the wound which she was then going to give to Huey.

"Ugh…" A groan slipped out of the young boys lips.

"Hey, I'm Jazmine. I'm going to help you, what's you name?" Jazmine asked as she handed Huey the needle to stitch up the boy.

"I'm… Mikey." He let out another groan of pain as the needle made contact with his leg. Huey didn't have time to wait for the wound to get numb to stitch him up, he wanted to do it now.

"Hey hey. Don't think about the pain. Look at me. Tell me something about yourself."

As Jazmine tried her best to distract Mikey, Royalty was already both covered in blood while Alex worked hard to fix the young boy.

"Check his breathing." Alex instructed as he dug for the bullet.

"Shallow but there." Royalty told him as she attached an oxygen mask over his mouth and nose.

"Good. I should get the bullet out… now." Alex sighed triumphantly as he pulled out the bullet and laid it on a sliver tray. He knew he couldn't relax however, because the boy was still in danger. "I need a need-"

"Here." Royalty held out the needle in front of him.

"Thanks." He said surprised she knew what he needed before he even got to finish his sentence.

Royalty looked at the boy on the table, not moving one inch. She didn't even know his name and here she was, covered in his blood.

"He's so… young." She said emotionally. It was the first she had ever see someone with a gun shot wound so it caught her off guard to see.

Alex took a quick glance over at her. "He's very lucky. Not many people with this injury survive. You may not feel as if you helped but you did."

Royalty looked over to the doctor but he was busy closing up the wound. She sighed as she checked the boy for anymore wounds hoping they didn't have anything else to worry about.

Another 5 minutes had past and the room was still. The four 'doctors' stood around looking at their two patients. Mikey had fallen into a much-needed slumber while Mateo was still out of it but stable.

"I have never seen so much blood…" Jazmine was the first to speak as she looked around the room. There was blood on the floor, equipment, their clothes and their hands… She lifted her hands and saw the blood had already dried onto her skin.

"I'll buy you back your clothes and shoes. Thank you for helping." Huey nodded towards the two who gave faint smiles back.

"I am sort of glad we didn't become doctors." Royalty lightly laughed as she walked over to Jazmine.

"We would have been terrible doctors." Jazmine laughed along with her as their way of lightening the mood.

"I have to admit too. You didn't break down and cry like I expect you too. You were actually helpful. These boys shall live to see another day thanks to your help." Alex told the girls. This made them feel ten times better about the situation at hand despite the hint of mockery in his voice. "Huey. Can I talk to you for a second?"

Huey nodded before walking to a corner further away from the girls so they could have privacy.

"Jazmine. Can you fucking believe this?! We went from drinking to saving two peoples fucking lives! This shit is crazy." Royalty breathed out. It was as if she was waiting to get that off her chest.

"I know. I have never sobered up as quick as I did then." Jazmine agreed with her. "I wonder what the other girls are doing. Nothing can be as bloody as this." She said as she looked down again at her outfit splattered with blood.

"Weirdest. Week. Ever." Royalty commented as she saw the men come back over.

"Come on. We're done here." Huey told them. The girls said their goodbyes to Alex before following Huey out of the room.

"Where we going?" Jazmine asked as they got into the elevator.

"Getting the other two and bringing you home. We got business to handle." Huey told her with no emotion in his voice.

"You don't have to take us home." Royalty tried to say but Huey jumped in.

"No. I am going to bring you home so I know your safe. Anyone could be following you from this building. I'm not taking the chances." Huey said. The way he spoke was as if he was talking to his other members. Jazmine could tell he was in full leader mode and it made her wonder if there were any similarities between this and how he was earlier.

* * *

As they entered Caesar's home, Ming and Cindy shot up from where they were sitting.

"Jaz- Oh shit look at all that blood." Cindy stopped herself as she saw the three new comers covered in blood.

"How are they?" Caesar asked from his spot in the room.

"Stable. Should be good by two weeks." Huey answered him which got a nod in reply.

"What we gonna do now?" Riley asked his brother.

"Getting these girls home then to the meeting."

"Cool. Ay Royalty. You can wear some of my clothes before you go home and shower. We would let you do it here but we got shit to do." Riley told her. She agreed and the two walked out to go and get changed.

Huey decided to follow his lead. "Jazmine. You can do the same with my clothes."

Jazmine looked up into his eyes and saw that it was almost going back to his original colour and were only the tiniest bit softer.

"Ok." Was all she could bring herself to say.

"Hiro, Caesar. Bring these two down to the cars, we'll be there soon."

With that, Huey rested his hand lightly on her lower back to guide her to his home.

* * *

Jazmine nervously stood next to him in the elevator. She was about to go into the home of Huey Freeman. A home she guessed barely anyone got the chance to see so she would say she was lucky. She took a quick glace over at him and saw his hardened facial expression that now seemed to plague his face ever since the phone call.

"We're here." He told her which pulled her out of her thoughts before following him.

Once he opened the door, Jazmine took in the view. It was the opposite to Caesar's vibrant house. It was simply black and red with hints of white.

"I'm going to find you some clothes." Huey said and she just nodded her head as she continued to look around the room.

It was the neatest males home she had ever seen. She expected some type of mess somewhere but no, everything was clean and put together. Jazmine decided to be nosy and began to look at the shelf in the corner of the room that held some books , sculptors but most importantly, pictures.

She slowly walked over and began to look at each one. There was only three.

The first was an adorable picture of young Huey and Riley. Jazmine guessed they were around four and two. They both had matching large grins as they were pictured holding an ice cream that seemed too large for their hands, as it dripped down their hands and around their faces. Both of their hairs were pulled back into cornrows which made them look like identical twins if it wasn't for the obvious age difference. Jazmine couldn't help but aw out loud at how cute the two looked. Riley looked cheeky as ever and Huey just seemed so innocent and free. She wondered when was the last time he smiled this hard.

Feeling as if she looked at the first picture for too long, she moved onto the second. This one kind of caught her off guard. It was a group of men wearing all black with black bandanas around their mouths and nose. Despite having half their face covered, Jazmine could see the family resembles. She guessed this was the males of the Freeman family. She wondered if they all were involved with the gang or was it just Huey and Riley. This picture didn't really help. It seemed like they were but she wasn't the type of person to jump to conclusions.

It looked as if they were standing in someone's backyard. Some of them even had guns on show which caused a shiver to run down Jazmine's spin. Yes, she had seen a gun before but sometimes she couldn't help herself. It was very intimidating. Her eyes diverted to the one sporting a large afro and knew instantly that it was Huey. If he didn't have the hair, then he could easily blend in like Riley seemed to do as there was two other males with cornrows standing next to each other.

Jazmine couldn't lie. This was a bomb ass picture.

Moving for that picture, she looked at the last one that caused a smile to spread across her face.

It was a teenage Huey and Riley standing with who she guessed were their parents. The family resemblance was on point. The father's genes were stronger than the mothers but Riley had her smile. From the baby picture, Jazmine saw Huey did too but she wondered what it looked like now. Huey still had the same straight face he always wore now which made Jazmine let out a silent giggle. She guessed he has looked miserable for years. His father was very handsome that even Jazmine couldn't help but stare and their mother was a beautiful black woman. This was a precious picture. A gorgeous black family whose love you could feel radiating just through a picture.

"Are you going to keep-"

"AHHHHHH." Jazmine jumped up in fright as she heard a voice behind her. "Shit Huey. You scared me."

"I don't know how when I have been calling your name from the other room. Anyway, here's the clothes. Put it on quickly so we can go." He told her. She grabbed the clothes and threw the hoodie over her head. She now felt frustrated by the attitude that suddenly came up from the small time he was away.

'His clothes smell nice though.' Jazmine couldn't help but think as she looked at the over sized black hoodie she had on. She didn't even bother looking back at Huey as she made her way out his house to the elevator. She pressed the button and waited silently. Huey's footsteps could be heard behind her but she still didn't turn her head.

Huey could sense her mood change and knew it was because of him. He couldn't help that he was stressing out. The Russians were now attacking them and they had yet to hit back which is why he was glad Raven managed to kidnap the shooter. This guy best talk or he is definitely going to get fucked up even more than they were already going to do.

They finally reached the bottom floor and just before Jazmine could storm out, he quickly stopped her.

"Wait… look. I'm not used to saying this so don't take it as me being sarcastic but… I'm sorry. I'm just stressed out. I didn't mean to take it out on you." He explained to her. That's really the best apology he could do. It was a foreign thing to him.

Jazmine looked up to him with her big green eyes, she could see he meant it despite his regular serious face that began to grow on her. She was usually attracted to smiling men but Huey was starting to get a pass.

"Thank you for your apology. I should've expected you to be stressed."

Huey just gave her a light nod and she gave a small smile. This made Huey have a weird feeling in his stomach because for the short time he has known Jazmine, all her smiles were bright. Why did he feel so guilty? Feeling as if he wasted enough time, he pushed his thought to the back of his mind.

"We should go." He said and they both walked outside to see Raven had joined them with an angry look on her face.

"Tell me they ain't coming." She stepped up to Huey as she looked Jazmine up and down. Jazmine scoffed at the look she was receiving.

'This bitch is really working my nerve.' Jazmine thought as she screwed her eyebrows at the woman in front of her.

"You don't have to worry about them. I just need you to get to the meeting. I'll be there soon." He said as he looked down at her. He saw the death stare she was giving Jazmine and moved slightly in front of her so he could get her attention and she could stop staring Jazmine down.

"Whatever. Riley help me." Raven turned to walk over to her car.

She popped the trunk open, only to get kicked in the stomach by a man whose arms were tied and head was in a black bag.

"What the fuck?!" Cindy screamed as the man ran towards them.

"Sit your bitch ass down." Riley said nonchalantly as he pistol whipped the man across the head. Instantly, he dropped to the floor, no longer moving.

"This some crazy shit…" Ming mumbled.

"Throw him in the van. Caesar and Hiro, take him." Huey instructed. The two men picked up the unconscious body and threw him in the black van that Jazmine just noticed.

"Well this is not how I expected the night to end but we had fun while it lasted. We should do this again some time." Caesar grinned as if nothing happened which made the girls wonder about if they experience the same thing. Caesar and Hiro gave them quick hugs before jumping in the van and driving away.

"Where you going?" Raven asked as she saw Huey pulling the girls in the direction of his car and what she guessed was theirs.

"Taking them home. I'll be there soon." Huey told the annoyed woman.

"This ain't good Huey." She called out to him as he saw the mixed girl get in the passenger seat next to him while Riley got in the driver's seat of the other car but they both ignored it.

Raven got in her own car and went down the same path Hiro took. She needed to give Huey a piece of her mind, she couldn't have him slipping up. She was his true right hand despite everyone saying it was his brother. It was her. Everything was her. Now she's got this biracial stripper girl all up on him who will only bring trouble along with her. No matter what happened, Raven was going to be the one to set Huey straight.

* * *

**Oh shit, new record. This has over 3,000 words I don't know how I did it. As I continued writing, I realised there was no good part to end it so I had to continue but I hope you enjoy it.**

**Bulmas Ego: I know right. Very HOT. (Besides the peeps getting shot of course), they'll be fine though.**

**hot gurl: Females be like that sometimes. She should know better though. I am glad you still thought the kiss was cute even though it wouldn't be how you would like it to happen but well see how the next one goes, if there is going to be a next one. Also, I am happy that you like my style of writing. Can't wait for your next review.**

**SammiSweetheart: Happy for new people to follow along with the story, thank you very much.**

**Alright, I'm done now.**

**Dueces**

**-TBG**


	11. Chapter 11: The Panthers

Huey had just dropped the girls off and was making his way towards his warehouse to commence the meeting he had called.

Tonight did not turn out how he expected it to. He thought he would just be a bit buzzed and fall into a peaceful sleep with no one disturbing him. Not two of his people getting shot, having to save their lives and now having to fuck up a Russian to get information out of him. All while the girls saw it. Damn. The girls. They were seeing the dark side of the street life already; he didn't blame them if they said they never wanted to see them again. It was a hard life to be apart of let alone witness first hand. People were out here dying every day from the gang lifestyle and Huey was trying take keep his to minimum. If they ever lost someone then Huey would feel like he failed them.

His father had to teach him that people will die in the world they live in so he shouldn't beat himself up over every life they lose. Huey thought he had learned but it sometimes takes a toll on him. He wasn't as cold hearted as people think he is.

"Man, what we finna do with this Russian motherfucker?" Riley asked after a speeding 10 minute, supposed to be 20, ride.

"You know what we're going to do Riley." Huey replied simply. They began to walk towards the warehouse that belonged to them. This is where only part of their business takes place. They never have just one place of business. It looked run down and abandoned on the outside with a few broken windows here and there, graffiti and bullet holes. This meant that people on the outside never gave a second glance at the building and they could do business there.

"Yeah yeah. Can I do it this time? You got to do it last time." Riley begged like he was a child asking something as simple as playing out with his friends. Huey shook his head at his brother, to everyone else he was this badass gangster but to Huey, he was a whinny annoying little brother.

"Whatever Riley. Let's get inside." Huey told his brother. The two walked side by side towards the medium black metal door which held the entrance to the building. Huey took his large hand and did a simple two bangs. "Open." Huey simply said. Being the leader, he didn't have to say much, everyone should recognise his voice by now and answer to when they heard it.

Instantly, the door swung open and standing next to the door where a large white man and a lean but muscular Asian man. They both moved out the way for the brothers to walk in.

"Ay what's up my mans." Riley called out. Huey was walking very fast so Riley had no time to stop and greet them properly like he usually would do. Huey was in a rush to talk to his people about the situation at hand before anything else popped off. He needed his people to prepared for anything that would happen next. They couldn't get caught slipping again.

A few seconds later, they entered a large room that had around that held around 40 people. The people ranged from males and females, different ages and races. Huey didn't discriminate when it came to picking members for his gang, they could be from any walk of life as long as they fit the necessary criteria. They needed to be useful in more ways than one, have respect and most importantly loyalty. Loyalty will get you far in life and that's something Huey didn't take lightly. If you cross him, you would immediately regret it. Whether he decides to kill you is entirely up to him.

Let's just say you best count yourself lucky if you survive but you would wish he had killed you.

Huey stood in front of the room and looked at the people who were waiting on him to speak. Just before he came in, there were a low level of chatter from them trying to figure out why Huey called a meeting at this time. It wasn't a regularly thing to have meetings so early in the morning, they would usually have it late into the evening if anything. This proved that what he needed to say was important and couldn't wait for the sun to come up.

Huey looked around the room and his eyes landed on Raven who was right at the front. She pulled her 22 inches of straight black weave into a ponytail and now sported black jeans, a pair of green trainers but what made Huey stare at her longer was the black deep v neck she had put on. Huey couldn't help himself but to stare, he was a man after all with urges. She had an average sized chest that were sitting perfectly and exposed. He has seen her naked before but that was when they were young and he didn't really have any intentions to refresh his memory despite her natural ability to look good in simple clothing.

Hearing his mother scowling him for staring at a woman inappropriately, he decided his people waited long enough.

"I know many of you are wondering why I have called this meeting so suddenly. Early in the night, two of our younger people were shot. Both are stable and should make a full recovery. Raven, luckily was on the scene and managed to get the boys to me quickly and safely before the situation could worsen. To that I am sure they are grateful to her. She also managed to get the bastard that attack them and he is currently unconscious. All we know is that he's apart of the Russians and trust me, we will not take this lightly but that doesn't mean I want you all to be gun blazing all the time. Remember there are still innocent people out there. We're going to get more information but as for now be careful and if anything happens or seems abnormal, make sure you come and tell me." Huey ended his speech and he saw the head nods around the room showing their understanding.

Everyone's faces read different feelings: anger, frustration, determination and relief just to name a few. This is not what they expected to hear but you always had to prepare yourself in this way of life.

Raven looked at Huey in admiration. She loved when he took control, whenever he spoke, she listened to every word that come out of his mouth in his Chicago accent. She wasn't the only person who thought this too, she knew a few other females that would stare at Huey all the time but Huey being Huey would choose to act as if he didn't notice.

He noticed.

He had to notice.

His sexiness and him thanking her almost made her forget that he had them hoes over when he should be doing some other shit. She didn't know what he should be doing but it didn't include them.

No, she wasn't jealous, she was just annoyed. She had to make sure the girls were not fucking over the boys. As a female she knew males could be stupid when it came to pretty girls so she was making sure they didn't mess up their flow. She didn't need them coming and messing everything up, especially at a time like this. Everyone needed to be on their A game now.

"Huey!" She called as she saw him walking towards what you would call the 'torture room'. Everyone else were making their own way out, most likely to go home but she didn't want to leave yet.

Huey sighed as he heard his name being called. He didn't want to hear her ranting on about the girls, he knew it wasn't a good idea but he couldn't stop Caesar when he had an idea in his head.

"Raven. I got shit to do I haven't got time-"

"Which is why I am going to come with you. I caught the dickhead I'm going to be the one that makes him talk." Raven had to do a little jog to catch to him because of how fast he was walking, she hated when he walked fast because she felt stupid when she had to try and catch up.

"Riley called dibs."

"Yeah bitch I called dibs- ouch!" Riley jumped in but was cut off by Raven sending a straight punch to his right arm.

"How many times do I have to tell you to not be calling me no bitch? You should know your ass is gonna get hurt nigga." Raven glared her dark brown eyes up at the taller male but didn't let her height stop her from squaring up.

"Cuz yous is a bitch, bitch." Riley teased. Raven raised her fist again ready to delivery another hard punch when Huey jumped in.

"Both of you stop. We got shit to do." Huey turned around to look at the two with his eyebrows hunched over in annoyance. He had no time for their childish acts.

"Fine." They both mumbled but gave each other a quick dirty look at the same time.

Huey sighed in frustration at how immature the two were being but continued to make his way to his next destination.

* * *

They finally arrived to another metal door which looked old and rusty but it was sturdy. When they first found this place, this was just a simple room but once Huey got a hold of it, he decided to make it sound proof so when times like this happen, no one will hear the person scream on the outside. Sadist but that's what he wanted. He wouldn't give the person the satisfaction of them being heard by others and possibly saved.

Huey pushed open the door and stepped in to see the man sitting there with the bag still on his head, slumped over and his limbs tired to the chair.

"Reezy hit the shit out of this boy. He still knocked the fuck out." Caesar laughed from the corner of the room. Him and Hiro were already in there waiting for Huey to come in.

"Did you search him?" Huey asked as he circled around him.

"Yeah got his phone. Not much in it, just a phone call to an unknown number 5 minutes before the shooting. And a text with the location he was at. I got his name if you want to know." Hiro told him as he showed him the destroyed small phone.

"Don't tell me yet, I wanna see if he will tell me. Wake his ass up." Huey said to know one in practically as he pulled up a chair to sit in front the man who ruined his night.

He looked over and saw Caesar holding a bucket with what he guessed was water. Riley ripped off the bag and immediately, Caesar threw the water straight into his face.

The man lifted his head and began to gasps for air, looking around shocked at the sudden cold feeling that was running through his body. He tried to jump up but realised he was restrained and began to swear in Russian.

"Stop you whining." Raven scoffed as she slapped him upside his head.

"Don't touch me you stupid bitch!" He screamed at her. He tried to launch himself at her and had to remember again that he couldn't.

"Dumbass." She mumbled as she walked away from him to go sit on the table in the room.

"You best let me go you bastard or I'll-"

"Or you'll what? You can't do shit to me." Huey smirked as he leaned forward and rested his elbow on his knees.

"You... you're Ghost. I must say, I am disappointed. You just child." He laughed as he looked at Huey sitting in front of him. He then began to look around the room at everyone else. "And your punk bitch brother Young Reezy."

Huey got the nickname from when he was younger, he would run around the house silently so no one would hear him. He would unintentionally scare people and thus was born the nickname Ghost which he got from his uncles and father. Riley got his nickname because he went through a phase of loving Lil Wayne so they took Weezy and made Reezy which fit him perfectly. Reezy was a well known name in the streets now as well as Ghost.

"Fuck you nigga!" Riley sent a clean swing to his jaw. The man's head flew sideways and a trail of blood leaked from his mouth. The man sadistically starting to let out a full belly laugh as he slowly turned his head back towards Huey. His once white teeth were now coated in blood.

"So. Let's start simple. What's your name?" Huey said nonchalantly, not paying any attention to any of the blood dripping down his mouth.

"Why would I tell you that?" The man laughed again. Huey gave a slight nod towards his brother who smirked before giving the man a quick four combo straight to his face, causing a cut on his lip.

"Names Zach." Hiro answered for him which made the man drop his smirk. Seeing this made Riley begin to laugh.

"Haha! That's a bitch ass name. Zach. Stupid ass."

"So, Zach. What made you think you could shoot at my people and get away with it?" Huey asked.

"You and your people will no longer be around. Us Russians will have these filthy streets of Chicago to ourselves. It's only a matter of time before you meet your death and I can't wait to witness it. We will even have your whores." He smirked as he looked over at Raven who just rolled her eyes.

"He talks too much. Help me nigga." Riley said to Caesar as he grabbed the chain. Within a few seconds, the man was hung up by his arms and his legs tied down by weights.

"Get off me!" The man shouted but no one listened.

"You are in no position to be giving orders." Huey yawned as he now moved to stand in front of Zach. As he stepped closer, Zach tried to spit blood in his face but missed miserably, causing the room to laugh at his pathetic attempt and making the man become red with embarrassment.

"Aww someone's embarrassed." Caesar teased.

"Isn't that cute." Raven joined in making the man look down at his feet.

"Ay I'm bored. I wanna go home. Start talking." Riley said annoyingly as he crossed his arms.

"No."

"You asked for it."

Riley chuckled before squaring up in front of the tied up man. He sent powerful body shots causing Zach to cough in pain. He then threw a crushing right upper cut that made the man fling his head back from the force.

"Why are you here?" Huey asked impatiently.

"We want new place to sell product. What other place than here. We knew these people are poor and desperate so why not. Easy targets. Vladimir will never..." Zach stopped when he realised he accidentally leaked his leaders name.

"Vladimir... tell me more."

"No."

"Wrong answer." Caesar smirked as he saw Riley go over to the table Raven was sitting on. He picked up 5 knives before walking back over to Zach.

One knife to the left arm. One to the right arm. Another to the right leg. One to left leg. Riley stopped and admired his work with the last knife twisting in his hand. Each wound was leaking as well as the agonising groans that were leaving the man's blood-filled mouth.

"I suggest you tell us everything we need to know and I might spare you with the last knife." Riley taunted him.

Silence.

"MC." Huey called over to Caesar who already knew what to do. Him and Riley began beating the shit out of Zach who let out cries of pain. You could hear the crushing sounds of bones and the buildup of blood in his throat as he began coughing.

"Ok ok! I'll talk!" He managed to breath out. Riley and Caesar looked back at Huey who nodded for them to back away. The young leader looked at him waiting for him to speak. "There's a drop off on the east-side of Chicago... going to be kilos of drugs coming in a month from now. There are more products but we're just setting up shop now. I got told to kill those boys to make you scared. I only just joined, that's all I know, I swear. Please let me go." The man sobbed and begged but no one was moved by his crying.

"If you gonna catch one of these fuckers, at least get a useful one bitch." Riley looked annoyingly at Raven who was just about ready to fly kick the younger Freeman.

"Just let me go..."

"Nah. No can do." Hiro smirked as he stepped up too.

"Wha-what? But I told you everything I know. This is the part where you let me go." He coughed out.

"What the fuck is this? A movie? There ain't no happy ending in this shit. You have to pay for the shit you did." Riley told him as he held the knife up to his face.

"So, what part we sending?" Caesar smiled as he looked at the squirming man.

"Send a hand. You know who to call to handle the rest of the trash." Huey said casually as he began to make his way out of the door, leaving the screaming man and his friends to do as they please.

* * *

Huey sighed as he made his way towards his car. He hasn't been this tired in ages and he couldn't wait to get home. He felt as if he needed to pay a visit to his parents so he could get some advice from his father. His father sometimes felt guilty for throwing the responsibility of a whole gang on his son but Huey kept reassuring him that he made the right choice. His father was getting older and he nearly died the last time, Huey was responsible enough to take over and knew majority of the ropes by the time he was 18. Also, everyone knew if he left it up to Riley, all hell will let loose.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by the sound of notification on his phone. He was shocked to see the message but a side of him was kind of happy he did.

_Jazmine: Hey Huey. I know you are probably busy right now but I just wanted you to know that I enjoyed tonight despite all the drama and chaos after. I hope everything is ok on your part. Me and the girls are holding up fine, we're big girls, it's going to take a lot more to traumatise us lool. Well by the time you reply I might be asleep but I just wanted to let you know that you shouldn't feel bad for what happened. You didn't know it was going to happen. Anyway, I feel as if I am rambling in a text, I hope to see you soon, probably when the club starts up again. Goodnight *heart emoji* *smile emoji*._

Huey looked at the text in shock. He never had a female write a long paragraph unless it was cussing him out so this was new to him and he had to admit... he did like it. He showed a small smirk before typing his reply.

_Huey: Everything is good on my part too. Don't worry, I sorted it out and why wait till the club opens? Let me take you out for dinner tomorrow night to make up for tonight._

Huey sent the message but then realised what he sent and wanted to slap himself. How could he say something like that? She probably thought he was taking her kindness in the wrong way and now wants nothing to do with him. The thing that was making Huey more annoyed was that he hasn't felt this type of nervousness with a female since he caught feelings for Raven. They were teens then. That was puppy love.

Maybe this was just him and his hormones going out of control, the lap dance may have caused him to think he was feeling her but he really just wanted to fuck her. No, that was stupid. The man who had the answers to everything didn't even have the answers to his own head. Fucking useless.

*Ding*

Another message from Jazmine.

Huey breathed in slowly before opening the text.

_Jazmine: Sure, I would like that. Pick me up at 7:30?_

The angry man with an afro lets out the breath he was holding onto in preparation of having to accept rejection.

_Huey: Yeah. Goodnight Emerald._

'Fuck. Why did I call her by her stripper name? What is wrong with you today Freeman? You are honestly losing your whole reputation in a matter of seconds.' Huey beat himself up as he saw the bubbles floating on the screen. Then stop.

'Oh no. She didn't like that.' He thought nervously. Seriously what was wrong with him right now?

_Jazmine: Goodnight Ghost x_

Seeing his street name caught him off guard. He didn't think she would know his street name and wondered how she found out but he was too tired to ponder on it now. He now had to remember to make reservations at a restaurant in the morning before he went to visit his parents. It scared him at how a side of him was interested to find out how the dinner will go with just the two of them, fully clothed this time and in public. All he knew was this gang business best not disturb him again.

* * *

**Another one. I feel as if each chapter is getting longer and longer. Oh well, more for you all to comment on. So yes, make sure you leave reviews.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	12. Chapter 12: Son

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Jazmine had just woken up and let out a much needed stretched which caused her to scream in satisfaction from her muscles being pulled. She sighed before rolling over and grabbing her phone. She knew it was a bad habit people had but she couldn't help it, it became something she did every time.

She checked her messages and saw the last text was from Huey. Oh yes, she had a date tonight. Well, was it a date? He just said he was going to take her out but could she consider it a date if he never said it was a date? It didn't matter anyway, all that mattered was her now having to look through her closet to find something to wear which was not going to be easy. Most of her stuff is for work or the club, nothing much for a date, she didn't know what to wear. It was going to be a long day trying to find something to put on.

She opened her messages again and looked at the text. She didn't think Huey was really interested in her in anyway. She gave him a lap dance for work and then they kissed in the game because they had to. Well she could have taken a shot but that's not fun.

That kiss.

Thinking about it was making her feel flustered again. That boy got some skills on them lips of his. She knew if they were not in a room full of people, they would have definitely fucked there and then on the couch which showed just how good it was.

"Ay yo Jazz! Your ass awake?" Jazmine heard Cindy call from behind the door.

"Yeah, you can come in!" Jazmine called back. After she did, the door opened to reveal her sisters all still in the clothes they slept in. Jazmine sat up to allow there to be more space on her bed so they could all fit but even when there was enough room for each other, they still were lying on top of each other because they enjoyed the comfort of each other. It was something they did since they were young. Cindy had the biggest bed so whenever they had sleepovers, they would all end up sleeping in her large bed despite having other places they could sleep. Surprisingly, they always found it comfortable.

"So, imma just say what's on everyone's mind…What the fuck was that?!" Ming screamed which caused the girls to laugh and nod their heads.

"Foreals though. One minute Jazzy is about to shoot live porn next thing I know, she's covered in blood. Weird plot line for a porno to be very honest." Cindy joked making Jazmine role her eyes.

"Cin, you are being very dramatic right now."

"Jaz, can you blame her?" Royalty raised her eyebrow at the strawberry blonde who once again rolled her eyes.

"I can't blame her... but I can blame Riley!"

"Girl we all knew you wanted to rub up on all that gang leader dick. Hmmhm I see you." Royalty smirked at Jazmine as she looked her up and down.

"I am about 5 seconds away from kicking all three of you out my bed." Jazmine glared at the girls who just laughed at her trying to stay serious. "You cannot tell me that you three are not feeling Hiro, Caesar and Riley."

"We all know that I am feeling everything of Riley but I doubt we're going to do this for long. Probably fuck a few more times and then we act like strangers." Royalty shrugged. It has happened before and Riley didn't seem one for relationships so she knew not to get her heart involved.

"Why you lying to yourself? We can all see this going on longer than your old ones, you have never jumped on a boy faster than you did Freeman." Cindy told the young girl who just rolled her eyes. "Caesar seems like a cool dude... lets not jump to conclusions."

"Same here with Hiro."

"And me with Huey."

When the girls heard Jazmine say that they all gave her a 'really bitch?' look.

"What?" She asked generally contused.

"Miss Jazmine. We all know you and Huey are going to be fucking in a few days. Maybe even tonight." Ming pointed at the green eyed girl.

"Funny you should mention that... He asked me out on a date. Well, a dinner." Jazmine said casually. The whole room feel silent which made Jazmine feel as if she did something wrong or even broken them. "What..."

"AHHHHHHHHH!" All three girls jumped in excitement as if they were 15 again excited over a school boy crush which made Jazmine hold her hand over her heart from the sudden shriek that exploded in the room.

"Ow."

"Jazmine! When did you find out?" Cindy asked excitedly.

"Just before I went bed. I text him to make sure he didn't feel bad for how the night ended and he said he will take me out to dinner to make up for it." Jazmine explained as her eyes slowly turned red.

"Aww Jazzy has a date." Ming cooed.

"I guess the Freeman charm is making their way into someone else's panties." Royalty raised her eyebrows at her friend to show she was being very serious.

"You know I don't have sex on the first date."

"Girl you never know what will happen." Cindy nudged her.

Jazmine sat there and thought about it for a second. She's had a handful of boyfriends in the past and the ones she did sleep with, it was never on the first date, no disrespect to anyone who did, it's just who she is. Just because she's a stripper, doesn't mean she sleeps with every man that asks her on a date like they thought she would. Let's just say they were very upset with getting rejected by a stripper who they believed were worthless whores when really and truly they are just normal people.

Did she really think Huey would charm his way just so he could have his way with her? No, he seemed different. He had a hard exterior but she could see a soft side to him and she wanted to see that for herself. She wanted to unmask Huey Freeman and find his soft side. She did love a mystery.

"It's just a little dinner. Nothing more." She tried to convince both herself and them. They all knew it was more than that.

"Either way, we have the whole day to get your outfit ready, so lego!"

* * *

Somewhere not far, Huey Freeman was in his car on his way to his parents' home. The home he spent 19 years in. Huey was a very independent person so he wasted no time to have his own place but he did have good memories in his childhood home.

Throughout most the journey, his mind was blank, he didn't want to unload his work on his parents, his mother even had a no business talk rule in her home which he was actually gratefully for. As he turned onto his street, he sped up a bit because he was not looking to stop for anyone, he just wanted to see his parents and leave.

By the time he pulled up to the drive way, his beautiful mother ran out ready to engulf him in a hug.

"Oh Huey!" She called out. She wasted no time to pull her eldest into a hug who barely had time to shut his car door. "I've missed you so much!" She pulled his head down and smothered his face with kisses. Huey screwed up his face but did nothing to pull her away because she would hold onto him longer and how could he say no to his mother?

"You saw me almost three weeks ago mother."

"So? I still miss my baby." She smiled as she grabbed onto his cheeks that held his hidden dimples.

Mackenzie Freeman was a gorgeous woman who looked young for her age. Her hair was as thick as Huey and Riley's and she had dimples that her sons inherited from her.

"Baby, you couldn't wait for him to come inside before you attacked him?" Huey heard another voice and turned to see his father standing on the doorstep.

Christian Freeman was a tall male with a short, faded haircut and just looked like an older version of what Riley and Huey would be. From the eyes to the facial expressions. When these two were born, everyone seemed to realise that Freeman men have the strongest genes, starting with their grandfather but Robert Freeman was a whole nother story.

"You both need to stop telling me what to do. Get your asses inside." Mackenzie lightly pushed Huey towards the door and he couldn't help but to roll his eyes. His mother was a character.

"Yes mother." Huey said sarcastically as he walked up to the front door. "Hey dad."

"Son." Christian nodded at his first born before patting him on the shoulder. "So, what's brings you to these sides of town?"

"I can't just visit my lovely parents?" Huey asked softly as they made their way towards the living room.

"No-"

"Yes! You can baby, I'm just glad to know you're still breathing." His mother jumped in, glaring at her husband who just held his hands up in defence. "You hungry son? Lemme get you something to eat I'll let you boys talk." With that, Mackenzie walked out of the living into the kitchen with Christian watching her figure walk away. She didn't really like hearing talk about the street life so this was her time to excuse herself.

"Damn... your momma still got it. Might fuck around and get her pregnant just because."

Huey looked at his father with utter disgust. He didn't need to hear about his parent's sex life.

"I rather you not. Riley is enough." Huey internally shivered at the thought of another annoying little brother. If he would turn out anything like Riley, Huey would seriously fight his parents.

"Ok. We'll see in nine months. Anyway, how's the gang?" His father leaned back into the chair he was sitting on and gave Huey his full attention. Even though he was no longer the leader of The Panthers, he still wanted to make sure his son was doing good. If it wasn't for his near-death experience, Huey wouldn't have taken the position as leader so quickly, if he even wanted to that was. His mother was very much against it since Huey was only 20 but he convinced her that it was the right choice. His father wouldn't be able to lead anymore and Huey felt he was more than capable of taking over so just over a month later after the incident, Huey became leader. Christian made sure to check up on them when he could, if Huey needed any help or advice, his father was not far to answer them for him. Christian always made sure he made time for his boys for whatever they needed.

"Well. Everything was going good until these fucking Russians decided they wanted to come and sell coke here. They then tried to take out two of my boys. Raven managed to capture the one that did it, got some information out of him." He explained to his father.

"I see. I hope you fucked the piece of shit up good. Don't let these motherfuckers try and fuck you over. That's not how us Freeman's do." Christian leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees as hard maroon eyes clashed with even harder maroon eyes. The tone of the older gentlemen's voice deepened and became sharp which let Huey know that his father just switched to his 'gangster mode' they all seemed to have. The older Freeman was ready to fight himself but knew his sons could handle it.

"Of course. Riley handled it this time."

Christian smiled brightly. "That's my boy. Just like his mother, always wanna take charge."

"And why is it that its bad if one son is like me?" Mackenzie commented as she came back with a tray full of fruits and some orange juice.

"Thank you momma."

"Welcome baby. Now, someone answer my question."

"We were just saying Riley takes after you, trying to take charge of everything." Christian casually answered. Hearing this made the older woman slap her husband upside his head, making him flinch from the slight stinging pain at the back of his neck.

"Shut up. I do not try and take charge."

"Yes you do."

"No I don't."

"Yes you do."

"Do you want another slap right upside your head?" Mackenzie chocolate eyes looked into the same eyes that got passed onto her children to show she meant what she said, causing the man to sit back. "Now that your dumbass father is sitting nicely. What's this I hear about you buying another club?" She asked as she sipped her drink. It wasn't hard to hear news about her children. People talk.

"Yeah... I did." Huey asked, hoping his parents didn't push any further but he knew his mother. She was going to ask more.

"And what kind of club is this?" She asked innocently as rested her index finger on her eyebrow. Whenever she did this, it was because she already knows what she's talking about, she was just waiting for you to admit it so if you lied, she will go on one.

"A strip club..." Huey almost whispered. He was just waiting for a lecture.

"Did I just...? Chris, did your son just say he brought a strip club?" She turned to her husband with wide eyes and mouth open while he just looked amused.

"I think he did Kenzie." Christian laughed as he saw his sons embarrassed face. There were only a few moments when Huey will have more than two emotions so he found it hilarious when he showed more. "What made you buy a strip club?"

"Riley. He took us there. Saw potential. Decided they needed a better manager." Huey explained as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

"I cannot believe you out here buying some hoes. I best not hear you or Riley sleeping with one of them. As a matter of fact, I shouldn't hear the same from Hiro and Caesar. You boys need to remember to have some standards. We all know your daddy was a man whore before he found a real one but doesn't mean you can follow."

"Not my fault I got stuck with this Freeman charm and style." Christian grinned as he leaned to the side and kissed his wife's cheek. "Besides, if they want to mess around with some strippers let them. As long as they make sure they don't get scammed or robbed, I'm fine with it."

"Of course you are."

"Moving on. I should be leaving for my-" Huey stopped himself and his eyes grew in size for a second. Just for a second. He's said too much. Now his parents were going to ask him about what he meant and he really didn't want to say anything.

"Your what?" Mackenzie questioned him.

"A meeting."

"Don't lie to us boy. We see your eyebrow twitching and shit." Christian raised his eyebrow to his son as he picked up a juicy red strawberry and plopped it in his mouth. Huey knew he was right; he couldn't avoid them. Maybe he shouldn't have come here in the first place. He should have just called.

Huey took a deep breath in... and out. He hated this, this emotion and feelings things. It wasn't Huey Freeman style. He was losing himself.

"I am taking a girl out tonight. Bye." Huey tried to jump up and leave but his parents were quicker this time and managed to get in front of him.

"Not so fast Mr. What do you mean taking a girl out? You're going on a date? With who, Raven?" His mother asked.

As it was mentioned before, Raven's family and the Freeman's are close. Grew up together, worked together. It's safe to say that Mackenzie loves Raven ever since she was born. She secretly wanted a daughter herself so Raven and her 23-year-old sister were her daughters. This made it ten times harder when Huey broke off their relationship, Mackenzie missed having that daughter figure around all the time but Christian had to remind her that she can't force the relationship onto Huey. She eventually learned to let it go and not be so obsessed about it but she still has the hope there in her heart. She couldn't help it, Raven was the best match for Huey she had ever met. She wanted some grandkids and she knew they could deliver.

"No. Her names Jazmine. Met at a club."

"Oh well. Have fun and stay safe. I want to hear all about it after." The mother pulled her son down and kissed his cheeks before walking into the kitchen, leaving the two men to say their goodbyes.

"Don't worry about your mother. She's just been going through it these past few days but listen to what she said. Be good and not trash like your brother and tell him to get his punk ass over here. His mama misses him."

"Yeah I'll tell him."

"Bye Huey."

"Bye dad."

The two pulled each other into a quick parental hug before letting go and giving each other a slight nod, allowing one to make his out to his car.

Huey jumped back in his car on his way to The Blue Moon to see how the redecorating is going. He hoped it will be finished within a week so the girls could get back to work and start earning money again. He knew that strippers didn't play with their money, he saw a prime example when Royalty and Jazmine caught Louis taking their money.

He thought back to his mother's reaction when he said he wasn't going out with Raven. He loved his mother more than anything in the world but she could be annoying when it came to his relationships. He disliked how close the two were sometimes because he knew his mum secretly but not so secretly wanted them to get together again. That's one of the reasons he broke up with her, he didn't like the pressure of being in the relationships. The expectations put too much on him and he needed to break it off. There were tears but he had to let her go.

Now there was Jazmine. It was only a first outing or sort of date so he didn't want to think too deep into it. He didn't want to force it onto her, he just wanted to make up for the shitty night they had. He was surprised she said yes because if it was any other girl, they would run for the hills. Jazmine really wasn't like these other girls he was beginning to slowly realise. Thinking about it, he would be lying if he said he wasn't interested to find out what she was like when they actually had time to talk and away from other people.

All he knew was that tonight was going to be good night. He could feel it.

* * *

**I know. It has been a while. Busy as fuck but we move. The next chapter which will be the date will most likely not take that long to be posted but let me know what you think of this chapter.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	13. Chapter 13: Date Part 1

"Oh my fucking goodness. Jazzy you are one sexy motherfucker!" Cindy screamed

Jazmine had just come down the stairs all ready for her 'date' and the girls were living for her look.

The green-eyed girl had on a silk royal blue, thin strapped dressed with a V-neck that fell to the floor and had a single slit on the left side. Majority of her back was open besides from the lower bit that had the string in a crossing pattern. She paired it off with silver heels, purse and dangly earrings to match. Her makeup was flawless and her hair was straightened and pulled back into a ponytail.

"I. Am. So. Proud! Our baby is going off on a date!" Ming exclaimed as she whipped fake tears from her eyes.

"You guys, stop being so extra." Jazmine brushed them off.

"Have you seen how you look? What kind of shit friends would we be if we didn't hype you up?" Royalty commented as she stood up in front of Jazmine.

"I guess so..." She said nervously.

"What's wrong girl?" Cindy heard the tone of her voice and couldn't help but to ask because this was not normal for cheery Jazmine.

"You know I haven't been on a date in how long. I don't even know what to do."

"Jazzy don't you worry everything is going to fine. Look at the bright side, he already knows you're a stripper so you can skip that awkward stage." Royalty laughed.

"I guess so."

"Now turn that frown upside. We got some pictures to take baby girl!" Cindy cheered as she pulled out her phone.

"Finnnnneeeee." Jazmine groaned but immediately started posing for her girls.

"Yaass Queen!"

"Work it bitch!"

"Fuck it up!"

"Living for it!"

"She gonna get some dick!"

"These hoes could never!"

*Ding dong*

"He's heerreee!" Royalty announced in a sing song voice as she ran over to the door like a child running outside as if an ice cream truck was there. She slowly opened it but only enough so that the guest could only see the one who answered the door. Royalty wanted it to be a surprise.

"Royalty. Is Jazmine ready?" Huey asked the woman that just so happen to be sleeping with his brother.

"Yes she is and I got to say, you cleaned up nice. It beats the blood." Royalty joked but Huey mouth didn't move an inch.

"Royalty, stop with the bad jokes and let the boy in. Jazzy waiting to go." Huey could hear Ming complain from behind the door.

Royalty kissed her teeth but opened the door anyway. "You're no fun."

Huey watched the door slowly open. He saw Ming, then Cindy, then... Jazmine.

He couldn't believe the view in front of him. The dress hugged her figure in all the right places from her breast, to her waist and to her hips. The dress was perfect for her. Now let's not forget the colour. It made her skin look so soft, he just wanted to reach out and touch her light caramel skin. The leg slit was about to send him crazy, he always loved them. The excitement of whenever a woman would walk and it would peak out would have Huey watching for a good while, that is until he realised how creepy he was being. Seeing this dress on Jazmine just made him glad he answered that text last night. He got to see his favourite type of dress on a sexy ass woman.

"You going to say something or you just gonna stare at her all day?" Huey heard Cindy's voice and snapped out of his thoughts, blinking finally.

"You look good."

"So do you." Jazmine grew a light blush on her cheek as she felt his intense eye contact.

"Really? That's it? 'You look good?' Wow, trash." Cindy shook her head as she crossed her arms over her body, showing her disappointment on her face.

Before Huey could respond, Jazmine jumped in.

"Forget it, don't listen to her. Let's just go. Goodnight girls!" Jazmine called out as she pushed Huey out the door.

"See you tomorrow morning as you do the walk of shame!" Jazmine heard Cindy call out to her with amusement all in her voice.

"Wrap it up!" Ming advised just before Jazmine slammed the door shut.

"Friends right." Jazmine laughed as she looked over at Huey's one facial expression.

"I guess. We should get going before we lose our reservation." Huey told Jazmine. She nodded before following Huey to his car.

"Here let me help you." Huey said like the gentleman his mother raised him to be.

"Huey, I have walked down these steps hundreds of times in heels. I'll be fin-woah!"

Jazmine was cut off by her heel giving way, causing her ankle to fall sideways. She clamped her eyes together, waiting for the impact on the pavement on her hands and knees but all that came was a gust of wind and cold hands that she could feel through her dress.

She slowly opened her eyes to see that Huey was the reason she didn't touch the hard floor. Her clumsy self had to have this strong man come save her while she was trying to prove a point that she is an independent woman enough to walk down a set of stairs without the need of a man's help. The timing on her fall was just plan rude.

"You alright?" He simply asked her.

"Yeah… thanks…" She was in shock on how quick he caught her because she was known for how fast she would fall and no one was ever able to catch her. That is, until now.

"Let's get in the car. Hopefully you don't trip on your way in." Huey gave her a slight smirk that caused a warm feeling in her stomach.

'Woah. Slow down girl.' She told herself.

"Haha. Very funny." She lightly shoved him in hopes he wouldn't see the pink shade forming on her cheeks.

Huey held out his hand waiting for her to place hers there. At first, she wanted to just push past it and carry on walking to the car but she didn't want to embarrass herself again so she took that hand.

'Hands still cold.' She observed. With the help of Huey, they walked to his car parked in front of her house. Jazmine went to open the door when his right hand beat her to it.

"Ohh what a gentleman." She teased.

"I was raised right. Well, when it came to women." Huey corrected himself.

"I see." Jazmine replied. With that, Huey causally walked round to the driver side which Jazmine felt was weird because she was used to men running around. It just showed how calm and collective this man is.

The car ride was silent. Jazmine knew Huey wasn't much of a talker and she was a none stop talker so the silence was secretly killing her but she knew she would have to wait until dinner to get the conversation going. She took this time to look at his outfit.

He had on a crisp white Ralph Lauren shirt with black dress trousers and white high-top Christian Louboutin's sneakers that had spikes on the front. His afro was shiny and perfectly shaped which made Jazmine want to run her manicured fingers through it and feel how soft it was.

"You going to be staring at me the whole night or are you going to say something?" Jazmine heard a deep voice say with a hint of mockery, which caused her to slightly jump.

"Shit!" Jazmine held her hand to her chest and she felt her heart rate speed up. "I was just appreciating your attire for the evening that's all. I was going to save all the talking for the dinner."

Jazmine saw him peer from the corner of his brownish red eyes and a slight smirk on his lips formed in the setting sun. This lighting was hitting him beautifully.

'I should take a picture. I can't let this lighting to go to waste.'

The green-eyed girl pulled out her phone and went straight to snapchat. Deciding she needed no filter she began to record herself, turning the camera to get all the good angles and some of her outfit. Huey wasn't going to say anything until he saw the camera facing him.

"Aww you look so cute." Jazmine cooed as she zoomed in a bit on his melaninated face that was concentrating on the road and was glowing in the light.

"You done?" He asked not even bothering to look at the camera.

"Ugh yes." She said as she stopped the recording and looked over at it. "Damn we look cute." She muttered.

Huey took a quick glace over at her phone and couldn't help but agree. They did look good but as of now, they had arrived to their destination for the evening.

"We're here."

* * *

**The real chapter 13 after I somehow uploaded the same chapter twice. Thank you for telling me Guest and RabbitMelody. This is part one of the date, part two is half way done and coming tomorrow. I decided to split it into two chapters because it was about to be over 3000 so I wanted to give you two even though this one is very basic so I don't blame you for not reviewing on this one since there isn't much to say. Anyway, the rest will be uploaded tomorrow.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	14. Chapter 14: Date Part 2

"Good evening, welcome to Rainfall how can I help you?" The waitress greeted the two.

Jazmine looked around. This was a high-class restaurant that was on the outskirts of Chicago. Jazmine had always wanted to come here because she heard the food was amazing.

"I have a reservation under Freeman." He told the hostess.

"Sure, I'll show you to your table." With that she picked up the menu and instructed the two to follow her. Subconsciously, Jazmine reached out to hold onto Huey's hand while the other one held onto her purse and dress so she didn't trip up on it.

Huey took a quick glance down at their hands. It was weird to hold someone's hand because he wasn't used to it but for some reason, he felt that it was going to turn into a new habit that he didn't know how to feel about. Within a few seconds, the three reached a table of two.

"Here." Huey quickly jumped behind Jazmine to pull out her seat for her.

"Thank you... have I mentioned you being a gentleman today?" Jazmine joked as she watched Huey take his seat across from her.

"Once or twice." He smirked and she mirrored his.

"May I get you some drinks?" The waitress asked.

"Jazmine? Get whatever you want." Huey asked. She was shocked that he asked her. Usually her date would order the most expensive drink to show off. As you could tell, she hasn't been on many good dates.

"Let's just get some of your finest champagne." Jazmine grinned at the waiter who nodded and walked away to get their order. "So how did you manage to get a reservation so quick when it takes weeks even months to get a table?"

"I have connections. I have connections everywhere." Hearing this made Jazmine realise how much influence he had. Huey Freeman was more powerful than she thought and she wondered how much more power he had.

After that the two sat in silence. They read through the menu on their own accord but Jazmine now felt as if she was using the menu to hide. She didn't want to do that, she hated when she started to do that.

"Hello, what would you like to order?" The waitress came back over.

'Damn the service is fast.' Jazmine thought as she looked at the grinning waitress.

"Yes, I would like..."

They ordered and waited for their food.

"You know. I don't like silence." Jazmine commented as she took a sip of her drink that the waiter had just brought over.

"Then talk."

"About what?"

"Anything you like." Huey looked directing into her eyes and they held onto each other's gaze for a second. Jazmine broke away because she was never one to be able to look people in the eye for too long, it made her nervous.

"I guess you was born and raised in Chicago. When is your birthday?" She asked. Huey saw she leaned forward as if she was ready to soak up the information that was about to be told but it also gave him a great view of her cleavage but he wasn't focusing on that at the moment.

"November 5th you?"

"Ohh a Scorpio. March 12th. Pisces."

"You really believe in that astrology shit?" Huey raised a questioning eyebrow towards the girl sitting across from him.

"Not really. I mean it's fun to read about and some of the things relate a lot to my personality so I can't help but read some things. Like it would say I'm a good friend, creative and emotional. Those are what I believe are true." Jazmine explained. She kind of felt embarrassed, a grown ass woman like her talking about zodiac signs.

"What do you think these websites, or where ever you find this information from, say about Scorpios that you think is true about me?" He enquired.

Jazmine sat there and thought for a moment, trying to think of the little facts she knew to answer his question. "You're determined, loyal, honest as fuck and stubborn as a motherfucker." Hearing her swear so effortlessly caused Huey's eyes to widen a bit from how causally she said it. "Sorry, Cindy is a Scorpio too."

"I see... so where you from and what you doing in Chi town?" He questioned. Not many people chose Chicago as their first choice to move.

"I'm from a town called Woodcrest. It's a basic place full of white people so you could imagine how annoying it was for an Asian girl, black girl and mixed girl to live with ignorant people. We chose the right white person to hang out with." Jazmine laughed as she thought about her group of friends. Before she could continue, their food was brought out. They thanked the waiter and dived right in. "Hmm this is so good! Thank you so much Huey!" Jazmine grinned as she tasted her fancy food.

"Glad you like it... So, Chicago?" He brought the conversation back to the previous question he had.

"Right yeah. We were planning on going school out here which we did for a while as a way to get away from our controlling parents but then we just found the stripper life. The rest is history." Jazmine shrugged before stuffing more food in her mouth.

"I see."

"You got any more siblings? Or is it just you and Riley?"

"Yeah, unfortunately. You got any siblings?" He took a sip of the bubbly champagne to help wash down his food.

"Nah. My parents never loved each other enough to have another child. One and done, I guess. I'm surprised they're still together after I left since it seemed like they stayed together just for my sake... Trust me, it would have been so much easier with less arguing." Jazmine couldn't help but roll her eyes. Jazmine would beg for a little sister but her parents just brushed it aside. When she was 10, she finally gave up the idea of there being another little Dubious. Her parents would always argue about little things that it became suffocating. She would find herself at one of her friends house every other day to get a breather away from their bickering.

"Trust me. One sibling is too much." Hearing this made Jazmine giggle. "Why did you straighten your hair?"

Jazmine stopped eating and looked at him with wide eyes.

'Why would I straighten my hair? That's a weird question. Does it look bad? Does he prefer my hair like this?' She thought before answering.

"I guess I do it sometimes if I want to um... impress people." She said nervously before downing the rest of her drink. Her hair had always been one of her biggest insecurities when growing up as it from her black side of the family. The white children and even teachers never understood what grew out of her head and made her feel like a freak. It took a lot of soul searching but she eventually learned to love her hair but there were still times, such as now, where she would fall back into those thoughts and will straighten her hair to impress people like now.

"You don't need to impress me with straight hair or even impress me at all. I like your natural afro, it is the crown on every Nubian Queens head. I have always liked natural hair on a black woman but if they wanted to do wear anything else, I have cool with that too, that's their choice." He said to her as he filled her glass up with more champagne.

"Nubian Queen..." She whispered.

"Yeah, that's what you are. That's what all black women are to me and should be to everyone else in the world." He told her sincerely.

"Wow... no one has ever called me that before, thank you." She chewed on her bottom lip, trying to avoid eye contact with him. All of sudden, she felt shy.

"No problem."

* * *

A few minutes passed by as they sat in silence enjoying their meal until Jazmine decided to break the silence again.

"What's it like, you know, being the leader of a gang?" Jazmine asked curiously. She always wondered how a 25-year-old male could run a whole gang and seem to be doing it so well too.

Huey was caught off guard and began choking on his vegetables which caused Jazmine to jump up in fear.

"Oh my gosh! Huey, I'm so sorry I asked. Are you ok?" Jazmine was ready to jump out of her seat but Huey held out his hand to stop her from coming any closer.

"I'm fine Jazmine. I just... didn't expect to hear that question. Not really a 'date' question."

Before Jazmine could let him answer, a large grin grew on her face. "So, this is a date?"

Huey barely had time to collect himself after chocking and now he was getting hit with another hard question which could send him on another coughing fit.

"It's whatever you want it to be." He answered smoothly trying his best to recover.

"Well then. I guess it's a date." The grin still didn't leave her face while the man across from her just nodded.

"To answer your question, there's no real answer to give. There is no easy thing about it. Every day you are met with new challenges, problems and threats. You can't show any weakness because there will always be something waiting to exploit it and use it against you. You have to make sure every single one of your people is taken care of or they will turn on you and that will lead to nasty results. Any decision you make, you have to be 100% sure you are making the right one because it will always, without a doubt, have a ripple effect. Where it will be a good or bad one is up to you which is why you have to pay attention to detail." Huey took a second to drink from his glass. He saw Jazmine's bright eyes wide with interest as she held onto every word that was being spoke.

"There is a constant threat of death. Whether I go, there's a target on my back... To be honest, in this climate, I don't want to be seen out with you by the wrong person which shows how irresponsible I am being right now." The afro wearing male took a deep breath to allow her to take in the information being thrown her way since it was about her safety just by being an associate of the Freeman's. Knowing the Freeman's never came easy to anyone, they experienced that problem first hand. "But don't feel bad, I asked you out and if anything happens, I'll protect you. Now, the good thing would be family. Some of these people have no family at all so we're to help, we don't discriminate."

Jazmine listened intensely at what he was saying. She knew it wouldn't be easy but damn, he had it hard.

"Wow and you're only 25."

"Yeah. I took over when I was 20 after my father nearly died, I stepped up."

Jazmine enjoyed listening to him talk, his voice was deep and it was just so inviting to her. It was weird but that's how she was feeling. Huey had the voice you could listen to for hours; too bad he chooses not to speak as much.

"You ever thought about having kids?" Jazmine curiosity asked him as she tilts her head to the right, waiting for his reply.

Huey sat there for a moment, staring at her. It was a question that he wasn't ask regularly so he didn't have a straight forward answer, he needed time to think.

"I guess maybe two or three. How many do you want?" He asked her back.

"Around the same. Maybe even four but who would want to have kids with a stripper?" Jazmine tried to hide her face away from him because of how stupid she felt. She heard it all the time: 'No one wants a stripper as a wife. She's had every man on her.' 'Can't turn a hoe into a house wife.'

She sometimes wondered if it was true because nothing seemed very successful for her so called love life.

"Just because you're a stripper doesn't mean you don't deserve to have children. It's like people saying I shouldn't have been born because my dad was a gang leader but I think I'm doing pretty fucking well." Huey reassured her, once again, making her go red.

'Really again? This is really getting out of hand!' Jazmine slowed her breathing in hopes to lose the redness in her face.

"I appreciate you saying that... How did you meet Hiro and Caesar?" Jazmine asked as she swallowed her piece of food.

"School. We were in the same class when we were 5. Been close ever since. I remember when we were 8 and a group of 11-year olds tried to jump Hiro so after school, we jumped them. They never looked our way again. I think that was the moment my dad realised that I could handle anything."

"Damn that's crazy." Jazmine commented.

"Tell me about yourself." Huey switched the conversation back to her as he sat back in his chair. He felt as if he had talked way more than he should but for some reason, this girl in front of him was making him do it. If only she knew.

"What do you wanna know?" Jazmine hated that question; it was so basic.

"Whatever you feel comfortable in telling me. Like how you became so good at stripping and medicine." Huey smirked at her while she just giggled. That's not a first date question. It's usually 'why did you chose stripper? You're so smart!'.

"Gymnastics. Captain of the cheerleading squad. My daddy's side of the family." Jazmine snorted thinking about how bad her mother's side was when it came to dancing. Her parents wedding looked very interesting in the videos. "Wanted to be a doctor but you know, stripping was easy and that money is too. Pervy men but as long as they paying, I keep it moving." She shrugged as she whipped her mouth with the napkin, very satisfied with her meal.

"All that experience seemed to pay off. As long as I own the club there will be no creepy men. Tell me and I'll throw them out... I see you enjoyed your meal." He nodded towards her empty plate and immediately she grew pink in embarrassment. "No need to get embarrassed. I rather you eat and be satisfied, then act like all you eat is salad."

"And if I did get a salad?" Jazmine raised an eyebrow and Huey mirrored her which she thought was sexy.

"Then you would go home hungry."

"Touché."

"You ready for dessert?" Huey asked as he saw the waitress coming back over to collect their empty plates.

"Hmm. I can squeeze a little something in."

* * *

They ordered their dessert and continued their night talking and laughing. Well, she did all the laughing and the majority of the talking but they enjoyed their selves. Jazmine got to see another side of Huey Freeman that she was glad to see. He was a very relaxed man who cared more than what he would show. His exterior was hard but she was chipping away at the even harder interior. She hoped they will continue seeing each other because this is the Huey she wanted to see more of.

She had a good feeling here.

Huey was beginning to feel the same way as much as the gangster didn't want to. He didn't do relationships. He couldn't. Especially not now when the Russians are on his tail but for some reason, she made him forget about all that. Everything about her way hypnotising. Her eyes, her gorgeous body, her beauty, her smooth voice. Jazmine Dubois was definitely a different kind of woman.

He had a good feeling here.

* * *

**Part two of the date. I hope you enjoyed.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	15. Chapter 15: Who's at the door?

The morning after the date, Huey woke up from his peaceful sleep. He laid in his black sheets thinking back to what happened when he dropped Jazmine home.

* * *

_The dinner had gone well and Huey had found out more about who Jazmine was. It wasn't as much as information about herself, more like who she was as a person. Enthusiastic, genuine, caring, sweet, to name a few._

_He pulled up to her house and saw the lights were still on. What did he expect when they were used to the nightlife?_

_He turned off the engine and the two sat there in silence for a few seconds until Jazmine decides to break it._

"_Thank you for tonight. It was amazing, I really enjoyed myself." She grinned at him._

"_I'm glad you did." He nodded her way to show his acknowledgement._

"_Who would have thought big gangster like Huey had a heart?" Jazmine joked as she witness the deep eye roll from the man in subject._

"_Don't get used to it. You wouldn't want to know me if you see the real gangster of Huey Freeman." He said seriously which made Jazmine turn serious herself._

"_Well I saw the real Huey Freeman tonight, he just so happened to be a gangster which is a plus. I don't like no bitch ass niggas in my space anyway, Cindy taught me that when we was 16." Huey couldn't believe this woman next to him. She kept surprising him._

_Silence fell in the car before Huey decided to break it which was a first. _"_Shouldn't you be heading inside?" Huey questioned with a raised eyebrow._

"_And what if I don't want to?" She threw back._

"_Why wouldn't you?"_

_Huey looked into her green eyes who seemed more hypnotic every time he looked at them. In the nights atmosphere, it seemed to draw him closer to her but he had to mentally pull himself back. _'_Have some self control Freeman.' He lectured himself._

"_Maybe because I don't want this night to end. I mean we could go to a club or something." Jazmine shrugged, being 100% serious._

_Huey shook his head. "You look too fine to be in any type of club." He let slip. He began have a cage fight in his own head. He couldn't believe he let that slip. 'Seriously, w__hat happened Freeman?!' He screamed at himself._

_Jazmine felt heat run to her cheeks and was glad it was dark enough he wouldn't see but instead of playing on her embarrassment, she chose to tease him instead._

"_Awww Huey you're so sweet." Jazmine went to grab his cheek but he effortlessly dodged her hand._

"_Yeah no. No cheek grabs."_

'_Might not be the only cheeks I will try and grab.' She thought, causing her to giggle internally._

_Huey looked at the huge grin plastered on her face which made him wonder if he took a mad woman out to eat._

"_Yes I am a mad woman but mainly when bitches wanna test me."_

_Huey slowly turned his face towards the front, his face stuck in a disbelief expression. _'_How did she know what I was thinking? __Is this when I run?' He questioned himself but instead he put the idea of running away to ask her for some help that he had just put together in the day._

"_Anyway... I need your help. I have a few girls that want to join the club and I need you to train them, per say. See what they got or whatever. Riley picked a few of the girls out which I'm pretty sure he fucked a few but that's none of my business." Huey asked her._

_Jazmine looked at him shocked. He said he was going to improve the club but she thought he just meant the physical look not actually with the girls too. She would be lying if she said they didn't need more girls but how did he find some so quick?_

"_Sure that's fine. I know how to choreograph some shit. Captain of the cheer team baby, as I mentioned before. I will ask Royalty to help with the overall all dance and tricks because you know them island girls seem to automatically be amazing at all that. Not the stripping, the dancing. You should see the videos when she was 5." Jazmine told Huey who just nodded._

"_I booked that studio about 10 minutes away from the club, next to the dry cleaners. I told them to meet at 4." Huey told her._

"_I'm good with that. We can meet you at your house before... Hey Huey."_

"_Yes Jazmine."_

"_Would me and the girls be able to work tomorrow night? We have been itching to earn some money and I hate no daily pay." Jazmine asked._

"_Ok."_

_Jazmine raised an eyebrow._

"_Ok? That's it? You ain't going to talk to your little girlfriend about it?" She teased._

_Huey screwed his own eyebrows._

"_My girlfriend? Jazmine, I told you Raven and I are just friends and I am her boss."_

_Jazmine looked at him. His face was more serious than before which kind of threw her off. She would've thought the two were sleeping together at this current moment the way she was all protective over Huey._

"_That's good to hear..."_

_They locked eyes. They both wanted to see who would break eye contact first if they ever would._

"_And why is that?" Huey whispered. He knew he didn't need to put much energy in his voice as he realised how close they were to one another._

"_Because then I'll have to fight her after I do this." Jazmine whispered just as quietly and leaned into Huey more. They felt each other's breath on their lips. _

_Huey felt like he should pull away but it's too late now. They were so close and he wanted it so badly._

_Jazmine's tilted her head slightly to her left. Their lips delicately touched when there was a flash coming from behind Jazmine._

_The two quickly pulled away to see Cindy, Royalty and Ming trying their best to hide but were horrible at trying. At some point of them sitting in the car, Jazmine had rolled the window so they could get some fresh night air in the car while they sat and talk. She was now regretting it._

"_Cindy you idiot! You left you flash on!" The two could hear Royalty scream._

"_Shh they didn't see it was us." They heard Cindy reply._

"_I see your friends are waiting for you." Huey pointed out. He smirked as he saw Jazmine's embarrassed face._

'_They are going to die tonight.' Jazmine began to plan ways on how she could kill the three girls and make a run after. Her parents were lawyers, they could help her get away with murder, they wouldn't let their baby girl do life._

"_I guess it's time for me to go inside. My mothers are calling me for curfew." Jazmine turned to look at her friends who tried their best to stay hidden._

_Huey looked at her friends and smirked. All four of them were something else._

"_Goodnight Jazmine." He kept the same smirk on his face as she turned to look back at him._

"_Goodnight Huey." She told him._

_What he didn't expect was her to reach forward and kiss the side of his lips. It was quick but soft. Before he could react, Jazmine was already out the car running towards her friends._

"_I am going to kill you hoes!" She screamed._

_He watched the three hidden girls run into the house screaming with Jazmine running behind the best she could in her heels. He even saw her ankle turn sideways but that didn't stop her. She kept running, out for blood._

_He shook his head at the girl he had just dropped off before driving off once he saw her closed the door behind her._

_Her behind did look good as she ran away._

* * *

Present

Huey had to step into a cold shower half way through his flashback, his sinful side started to take over, causing him to get a semi. He didn't want to take care of it so he jumped into the shower to avoid it going any further.

He wished he had pulled her back into the car and taken her home to have his way with her but he didn't want to rush anything. She seemed as if whatever they were doing, she wanted to take her time so he decided to put his urges to the back of his mind.

He stepped out the shower and put on some grey shorts and a white vest top that showed off every single one of his blessed muscles. Just as he was about to call up some people to make sure they were working, there was a rushed knock at the door.

Within a few quick strides, he was at the door. Looking through the hole and recognising the woman despite the crying, he swung open the door and immediately, she buried her face into his chest with her arms wrapped tightly around his torso. The force from the hug caused Huey to stumble back a bit.

"What's wrong?" Huey questioned as he looked down at the female shocked.

"Huey... she's dead... they killed her!"

* * *

**Who is this woman knocking at Huey's door? And who's dead? Just gotta wait to find out.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	16. Chapter 16: Knock Knock

Huey looked down at the woman in his arms. She was wearing an oversized yellow t-shirt that complemented her skin tone and hopefully some shorts underneath.

'Focus Huey. She's crying.' He lectured himself.

"Who? Who's dead?" He asked her with concern.

"My cousin, Andrea. The fucking Russians gave her some cocaine and she overdosed. She was clean for 4 months; she was getting her life together!" Raven sobbed in his arms.

Andrea was Raven's younger cousin. She was only 21. She got hooked on coke when she went on a school trip to DC when she was 18 and was never the same. Everyone tried to get her off but she found ways to find more coke. Not saying there was zero amount of cocaine in Chicago, it was just that with the help of Huey, weed was the main thing floating around. Huey even tried to get her on marijuana but she threw it back at him saying it doesn't get her high enough. Despite the 4-year age gap, Raven always looked out for her cousin which is why the news caused her to break down the way she did.

"I'm going to fucking kill those bastards! I know it was them. Anyone else that deals that shit drug, knows Andy was off limits. You made sure of that. Now she's dead and I'm fucking mad!" Raven screamed into Huey's chest.

Huey wasn't a hugger. Even in this situation he felt lost where to put his hand. The only person he has truly hugged was his mother and auntie and those were bear hugs that he somehow could never escape from.

He opted on resting his hand lightly on her back but he didn't get too deep into the hug.

"It's ok. We will make sure they pay. Don't you worry about that." He told her. He felt her nod and the two stood there for around ten seconds.

It was only ten seconds because Raven remembered something that pissed her off. As much as she wanted to stay in his large muscular arms and lean more on him, she couldn't let it slide.

She took a step away from him and gave him a quick but hard jab in his right arm. Huey slowly looked down at his arm then even slower, looked back at Raven who was standing there with wet cheeks. His one look instantly said 'you best fucking explain' in which she did.

"Where the fuck was you nigga? My ass was calling you all fucking night to tell you the news and you were nowhere to be seen. I had to ask motherfucking Caesar to hear you was too busy fucking that whore ass stripper! What the fuck Huey? Why do you have to be so fucking careless, I thought you knew better but your just like your bum ass nigga brother." She screamed at him.

Huey could care less about what she said about Riley because he had no need to defend his brother since they have being going back and forth for years but the shouting and disrespecting Jazmine had to be cut out real quick. There were times she forgotten that they were not only friends.

"First of all, you best lower your fucking tone when you talk to me. You may be grieving but I am your boss remember that shit. Second of all, what I was doing or who I was allegedly fucking is none of your fucking business since we are not together and haven't been for years. Third of all, you need to stop disrespecting her. She hasn't done shit to you so let's drop it." Huey stared her down intensely.

Raven was too sad and pissed to say anything else. Instead she just violent wiped her face, crossed her arms and stormed into Huey's room.

Huey couldn't do anything but shake his head. Raven would do that every time she got shouted at when she was younger, Huey never understood how she never broke out of the annoying habit.

Choosing to ignore her little tantrum, Huey decided to occupy his time with work. He had some shit to do to make sure the Russians were not messing with his stuff. Hearing the news of Raven's cousin made Huey mad, he knew he had to retaliate soon. They must think Huey is stupid and is hiding.

They have another thing coming.

* * *

"Jazzy can we go see Riley first?" Royalty begged as they reached the building where the Freeman's lived and had a very interesting night.

They had gotten there about 20 minutes early due to Jazmine's eagerness to be on time so Royalty wanted to see Riley. The two have been texting and facetiming every day and all hours. As much as they both would deny, they were catching feelings.

"Do we have to?" Jazmine fake pouted as they reached the buzzer.

"Yes bitch." Royalty cheekily grinned before reaching around Jazmine to press the button to Riley's house.

"Who dis?" They heard Riley ask.

"Royalty and Jazmine." She answered with the same grin on her face.

"Ite." They heard the door unlock and they walked into the building.

Royalty couldn't stay still all the way up to his front door. She even knocked more times than deemed appropriate.

"Damn girl, you knocking like you the feds." Was the first thing Riley said as he opened the door and let them in. It took him a few seconds to realise her attire. "Mm girl. You gonna make me have to fight niggas." Riley licked his lips and rubbed his hands together as he moved closer to her.

She wore a white very cropped, crop top that said 'Island Girl' across the chest. He could see her black bra underneath even though he hoped there was nothing under there. She had on theses black shorts that couldn't even be considered shorts. It was basically underwear. Her body was all of show and he was happy that he could not only see but touch too.

'So damn fine...' He thought as he got closer.

"Umm, what about me?" Jazmine asked pretending to look offended by the lack of attention.

Jazmine had on her own pink crop top that reached the top of her belly button and matching short shorts that had the white stripe of the side. Both of their hair was in fishbone style only Royalty had extensions on hers so it reaches down to her bum.

"Yeah you look good too. Huey's bitch ass is still in his house if you wanna go see him." Riley admitted. Before Jazmine could say thank you, Riley and Royalty were already all over each other.

Jazmine rolled her green eyes before walking out of Riley's apartment and towards Huey's since they lived on the same top floor.

She knocked… waited… waited… waite-

"Jazmine? What are you doing here?" Huey asked. She was here early and he had hoped Raven would be gone before Jazmine got here. He knew the two we're not very fond of each other.

"I told you I was coming over." She said as she invited herself in. She looked around the room. Everything still looked the same from when she was last here, covered in another person blood. She just hoped she stays clean this time.

"I know but you're early. I haven't even put on my clothes yet." He told her. Jazmine looked at the clothes he was wearing and had to stop herself drooling. The white vest was showing off some of his tattoos and his arm muscles as well as the grey shorts which were her favorite because it was showing off something else she wouldn't mind saying hello to.

Huey saw that she had spaced out and her eyes trailing down his body. Instead of stopping her, he took the opportunity to do it to her since it was only fair.

'Those hips are going to kill me until I can get my hands on them- no Huey stop it! You just had a cold shower once today, let's not get ahead of ourselves.' Huey shook himself out of the trance her body managed to pull him into and get back on topic.

"You finish staring there?" He raised an eyebrow at her.

Hearing his voice made her snap back into reality from staring intensely at his grey shorts.

'Yeah… the shorts.' She convinced herself.

"Shut up." She laughed and was about to playfully throw her bag at him until she heard another voice coming from the direction of his room.

"Huey where are- oh. I didn't know we had company." Raven not so innocently said. She knew what she was doing and Huey knew it too.

Jazmine looked Raven up and down.

'Umm where's her clothes?' She raised her eyebrow as she turned to look at Huey for a type of explanation.

"Her cousin died so she came over to tell me this morning. I'm guessing she didn't have time to change." Huey truthfully told Jazmine.

Jazmine nodded, seeing Huey was telling the truth. I mean he wouldn't sleep with someone right after going on a very good date with her, would he? Nah he wouldn't.

"Yeah so I think you should leave while we're in mourning." Raven jumped in. Huey rolled his eyes; he didn't want to hear the two bickering today.

"Raven, I'm fine. I wasn't that close to Andrea but I am sorry for your loss. Spend this time with your family." Huey said as a nicer way of telling her she should leave now.

"Yeah ok. Fine… bye Huey." She walked up to him and unexpectedly pulled him into a hug. Huey's eyes widen which made Jazmine nearly burst out with laughter by seeing how shocked he was.

"Bye Raven." Jazmine mockingly smiled and waved which Huey thought made her look like she was 10.

"Emerald." Was the reply before she disappeared out the home. The tone she had was meant to be disrespectful but Jazmine didn't care, that was just her work name, saying it in any tone didn't offend her. It was what got her money.

"You just going to stand there looking like a snack or are you going to get changed?" Jazmine teased. She didn't mind if he walked out in what he had on now but she just didn't want to have other girls eyes all of him. Huey smirked at the question but went to go put on some clothes.

* * *

It only took him around 5 minutes to get changed into denim jeans, a black Kenzo jumper and some black Jordan's.

"Hmm still a snack." Jazmine thought out loud. Her eyes widen, hoping he didn't hear but judging by his smirk, he did. "Let's just go get Royalty. She's with Riley." Huey nodded and the two walked to Riley's door.

As Jazmine raised her hand to knock on the door, the door swung open and Riley was there with shiny lip gloss all over his face and Royalty apply more right behind him.

"Damn, I was only gone for 10 minutes."

"Shiittt that's all I need sometimes." Royalty smiled as Riley put his arm around her shoulders.

"It was worth it." Royalty grinned.

"Sup gang let's get going!" They heard from the right and saw Caesar and Hiro walking up to the door.

"You two are coming also?" Huey questioned.

"He is, I ain't. I got things to do." Hiro said.

"Things as in Ming." Royalty raised her eyebrow and Hiro instantly became red. Seeing his confused face, Jazmine spoke up.

"We live in the same house. We know shit." Jazmine patted him on the shoulder as he got even redder.

"Well shit what this nigga gonna be doing? You three all boo'd up and shit and a nigga just here." Caesar faked tearing up.

"I'm sure Cindy down, just ask." Royalty said as they made their way out.

"Fine. I'll keep my options wide open." He smirked making Huey shake his head.

'The people I'm around.' He thought.

"Let's just go before we're late." Huey told them. They said bye to Hiro and made their way towards one of Huey's cars which was a black Jeep.

"Shoot gun!" Jazmine shouted and ran towards the passenger side of the car.

"No fair. I'm stuck with those two." Caesar moaned as he looked towards Riley and Royalty.

"Suck it up punk. You snooze you lose." Jazmine stuck out her tongue making Huey question if he made the right decision in allowing them all to get in his car.

"Whoever smelt it dealt it." Caesar sent back but that just left confused faces everywhere. "What?"

"You childish as fuck." Royalty laughed as they finally got into the car.

Huey had to take deep breaths before jumping in the driver's side. He hoped he could keep his sanity.


	17. Chapter 17: Dance Class

It didn't take them long to get to the studio with Huey's driving. The girls grabbed their bag and walked into the room where there were 5 girls waiting stretching and talking. They saw the new comers and all stopped and turned in their direction.

"Hey girls. My names Emerald and this is Diamond. We work at the club and have been for a few years with our other two friends, Ruby and Sapphire who you'll meet soon. We get called 'The Gems' down at the club. Huey has asked us to see what you would bring to the club. We will be going through some tricks and routines but overall we should have some fun." Jazmine, now going by Emerald, introduced as she walked in.

"Let's go around and introduce ourselves using your dancer name. As Emerald said, I am Diamond."

"My names Melody." A light skin girl with short brown, curly hair and brown eyes said.

Next was a white girl with straight blond hair and brown eyes. "Aurora."

"Daisy." A Filipino girl with curly black hair and brown eyes introduced.

"I am Charm and this is my identical twin sister Star." One of the girls said for the both of them. It was two black girls with brown eyes, Charm had her hair in an afro and Star had her hair slick back.

"Nice choices. There are no other girls with those names so you won't have to change it." Diamond nodded as her and Emerald began stretching while the boys just sat on the side in their own conversation.

"I'm sorry, I can't help but notice your top." Star spoke up as she looked at Diamond.

"Yeah. I'm Jamaican. Born there. You from the islands?" She asked.

"Jamaican and St Lucian baby." Star smirked.

"Yes gyal. I see you." Diamond smiled as she finished her stretching.

"Right, we've done stretches now some dancing. I'm going to put on music and you can do whatever you want, get comfortable. If you want to use the poles you can, just go crazy." Emerald shared a friendly smile before walking over to her phone to put on Twerk by City Girls Ft Cardi B.

Almost immediately, all the females in the room started screaming "Ayy" and all them started shaking no matter the size of their behind.

Huey watched the girls loosen up and he knew his brother and friend were too. The girls were all singing along and looking good while doing so but Huey's eyes stayed on Jazmine. Her smile was bright and she looked as if she was in her comfort zone. Her cheeks were shaking in all different directions and his eyes followed where ever it went. She was twerking standing up, bent over, even on the floor.

"Hit the splits one time!" Diamond shouted. She did a cartwheel into the splits while Jazmine slipped into the splits from her position on the floor while the others followed through in their own style.

"Where did you find these girls Riley?" Caesar asked as he stared in awe.

"Don't ask questions nigga..." Riley said softly as his eyes didn't leave Royalty.

"At some point, I'm gonna have to join in because I can't just sit here and watch." Caesar told the two.

"Relax Caes, you don't want to look desperate." Huey told him but he still didn't take his eyes off of Jazmine.

"You look just as thirsty as us don't even trip." Riley said to his brother.

Royalty looked over at the boys that were staring and smirked. They had the same face they wore when they came into the club only a few nights ago. A couple of days has changed their life dramatically.

"Jazzy look at them niggas gazing hard and shit. Huey got them puppy dog eyes on you." Royalty quickly whispered as they all calmed down from their dancing.

"No, he doesn't."

"Yes, he does. Look at him looking at you." She pushed Jazmine lightly.

"Stop it."

"If you talking about the one with the afro, then girl he is definitely feeling you. Surprised you aren't together from what I see." Aurora raised an eyebrow at her and the other girls nodded in agreement making Jazmine go red.

"I don't like this. We should get back to dancing. Diamond! Do sum." Emerald rushed out before going over and grabbing her water. Was it that obvious that her and Huey had something going on? She wasn't going to lie and say she hasn't start to develop feelings for the man but she doubted he felt the same way.

"Alright grumpy. Ladies, put on your heels and grab a pole. I'm going to show you some tricks you can do." Diamond clapped her hands together showing her eagerness to get started.

Jazmine sat on her own as she watched Royalty teach the girls different tricks they can use when dancing on the pole. Huey took this opportunity to sit next to her and talk to her away from everyone else.

"How you feeling?" He asked as he sat next to her. There was loud music playing in the back so she scooted a little closer to him so they could hear each other more clearly. She enjoyed being this close to him.

"Good. These some good dancers you got. Don't need to teach them much."

"If they weren't, I would have kicked Riley's ass for wasting our time." Huey told her making her giggle.

"Aw no need for that Huey. Everyone can learn to dance. You know the amount of people I have taught how to dance? It's not easy but I can teach almost anyone how to dance." She gloated.

"Then why didn't you become a professional dancer or a choreographer?" Huey asked her.

Jazmine stopped for a second. "You know, I have never thought about that. My parents said it was be a lawyer or a doctor. Two lawyer parents wanted a successful child. You should have seen how hard they cried when I told them I'm a stripper." Jazmine laughed. She then leaned her head onto his shoulder which was very unexpected.

Huey felt the sudden warmth on his shoulder and his eyes widened but he didn't say nothing. Instead, he wrapped his arm loosely around her shoulder. This position was new to them but it felt as if they had been doing it for a long time.

"At least you chose your own career."

"Yeah I-"

"Well done ladies! Now we are moving onto the last part of the day which is choreography. Emerald hopefully would be leading that if she's not too busy with her mans but have a 5-minute break." The two heard Diamond say after she turned off the music.

"Don't be calling me out like that!" Jazmine laughed as she saw Royalty coming her way.

"You spent all this time relaxing while I was bussing my ass on that pole. I was upside down for about 5 minutes straight. My head hurts!" Royalty pointed out.

"Ok ok. I'm coming." Jazmine lifted her head but Huey's hand still didn't move.

"We're on a break so you can stay there with you little boyfriend." Royalty put her hands out to indicate for her to stay where she was. She then strutted over to Riley that was waiting for her to finally come over to him since he was dying for her to come to him.

"I am actually very comfortable right now." Jazmine admitted.

Huey looked down at the woman in his arms and he had to admit that he felt comfortable too.

"Did you talk to Raven about us working tonight?" Jazmine asked.

"Shit. I knew I forgot something. I'll just text her now and tell her." Huey moved the arm that wasn't around her and pulled out his phone.

Jazmine fully expected him to move away but he didn't and she wasn't fussed about it. She liked their position.

"What did she say?"

"Don't worry about what she said. Just know that you will be working tonight and you have to wear black." He told her.

"Great! I can finally get me some money." Jazmine sighed.

"The club will be done in the next two, three days. You can get back to doing what you do." Huey said.

"I will have the girls ready for opening night." Jazmine nodded more to herself. "Now, I have relaxed too long, it is time I get my ass up and do something."

As much as she didn't want to. She knew she had to whip these girls into shape before they opened back up. She slowly peeled away from Huey's strong arms and stretched since she hadn't moved for a good 20 minutes.

"Glad you decided to join us again Miss Emerald." Daisy smirked as she saw the girl walk back over to the group.

"You know what, let's just get this routine going ok." Emerald smiled even though they all wanted to talk about her and Huey. "I got some news that the club sound be open in three nights so I want you all to make sure you have the routine down on lock. You all will be coming out together to make your debut on stage as the new dancers of The Blue Moon." Emerald began to clap and the others did too. "The song I have chosen for you is Bandz A Make Her Dance remix by Juicy J. Something nice and easy for the first time."

"So, who is comfortable with doing lap dances right from the jump? We can add that into the routine but only if you feel as if you want to, we won't force you." Diamond asked.

"My and sis can do it." Charm spoke up.

"I'll do it too." Melody raised her hand.

"That's great. Aurora and Daisy, you can work the pole in the back while they do the lap dances." Emerald nodded, picturing the scenario in her head. "Let's get started ladies." She grinned before running over to put on one of her many pairs of heels. "Daisy, Aurora, I want you two in the front and the rest in the back."

Diamond went over to Emerald's phone to play the song.

"The beginning is the first time anyone will see you. Look sexy. Strut your stuff, make them see what they're paying for. Tease them with your eyes and your moves. Don't do too much yet, you don't want to give anything away too early." Emerald instructed them as she pretended to walk out onto a stage in front of the customers, making eye contact with every single one of them to make them feel special and want to spend more money on them.

Huey, Riley and Caesar were soaking it all up. They listened to what Jazmine was saying and imagined themselves being in the club, watching them all come out on stage. Huey didn't know about the other two but he was only thinking about Jazmine dancing just for him in her cute little pink outfit and heels.

He watched her walk as if she was on the runway, put on hand on her hip and look around her. When she caught Huey's eyes, she winked at him and sent him a sexy smirk and instantly his third leg twitched. He drowned out her giving the girls instructions on what they should do and just watched her do her thing.

"Ay... I can't believe I'm gon' say this but... I think I'm in love with a stripper." Huey heard his brother say. If he wasn't so hypnotized by Jazmine right now, he would have looked at his brother as if he was crazy but then he would have been a hypocrite.

"I don't blame you nigga." Caesar said happily.

"Now we going to move onto the next part which is where you grab the ones who look like they have the most money." Emerald said seductively as she walked over to where they were sitting.

"Wait... is they coming over here?" Riley questioned. Royalty was coming up right besides Jazmine having the same seductive look on her face.

"Hell yeah." Caesar said.

"Now, there would usually be a chair on the stage ready but let's just drag these over." Emerald said as she grabbed onto Caesar and Riley while Jazmine got Huey.

"Caesar sorry but you gotta wait this first part out." Diamond laughed.

"It's always me being left out." He pouted.

Diamond and Emerald walked behind the Freeman's and rubbed their hands from the top of their backs, slowly down to their chest, taking advantage of being able to touch them in public. Within seconds, they were already standing back up and walking around so they were face to face. Without breaking eye contact, the two slowly dropped into splits, still facing Riley and Huey and began to bounce and twerk in place.

"This is the part where they will be throwing money." Emerald said as she stood back up. "You can all make up the rest of the routine to add your own spin on it. Don't want to give you all our tips." She laughed. Her and Diamond walked away and allowed the other girls to take their place.

"From the top!" Diamond shouted before starting the song again.

The two watched the five girls dance showing off the new routine they had learned and then freestyling at the end. Caesar was enjoying himself the whole time while Riley and Huey wished it was a different woman dancing on them. While Melody was dancing on Huey, he locked eyes with Jazmine who was looking right back him. He wanted to tell her to come and take over but he didn't want to be rude. It wasn't that Melody wasn't attractive or doing well, it was just that he only wanted one girl on him at the moment.

'Damn. Am I catching feelings?' He questioned himself. She gave him a smile. Not a sexy one just a genuine smile which made his own mouth move slightly. 'Oh no... I think I am.' Huey felt as if he wanted to slap himself, instead he turned away from those green eyes and stared blankly at the girl in front of him. He just wanted to get it over with.

* * *

"Well done ladies! Make sure you know what you are doing and wearing for the grand reopening. If you need any help just ask for it. See you then." Jazmine smiled at the people in the room and they all began clapping minus Huey. She felt proud of what she achieved today.

They all said goodbye and made their way out of the studio.

"You did good Jazzy, I feel so proud of you." Royalty put her hand over her heart, pretending to be tearful.

"Me? I'm proud of us! We did that!" Jazmine began to jump up and down in excitement.

"Damn girl you all excited and shit." Riley looked her up and down and screwed her from how high her voice went.

"Bitch don't kill my vibe." She told him.

"Huey, you best get your girl man."

"Riley leave her alone." Huey told him.

"Aww. Look at Huey defending his girl. I see you." Caesar teased.

"Whatever Michael."

"Hey, I wanna go shop real quick before we head home. Come with me Jaz." Royalty pulled her and quickly ran into the corner store that was next door before they could say anything.

The three men waited outside for the girls. Huey leaned on the car since it was his while the other two stood around.

"I am so glad I followed you all here. I wouldn't know what I would be doing if I wasn't." Caesar smiled.

"Word. I'm liking this shit right here." Riley crossed his arms and nodded.

"Forsure... ay, who that talking to them girls?" Caesar squinted his eye as he saw two men talking to the girls and them trying their best to be nice and simply walk away.

Huey turned to see what he was talking about and immediately jumped up. "Stay here."

"I'm coming too." Riley said as followed Huey inside.

Inside the store, Royalty and Jazmine was picking up a drink and just a few snacks.

"You and Huey were very comfy today." Royalty commented as she scanned the drink section.

"I guess." She shrugged.

"Is that all I'm getting? Is 'I guess'. We both know it's more than that. When are you going to make it official?" She asked as she picked up a drink.

"Who knows if it is even going to get that far."

"I do, trust me-"

"Damn don't you look fine." They heard a voice behind them. They turned to see two guys looking at them up and down.

"Thank you." Jazmine smiled polite and tried to move pass them.

"Uh uh wait. Lemme get your name. Then once I know that, your number would be nice too." The other one said.

"No thank you." Royalty answered.

"Why? You don't have a boyfriend, do you?"

"You could say that." Jazmine tried to move again but they stood in her path. "What do you want now?"

"I want you. Can't you see." He grinned.

"I can see but we don't want you. If you excuse me..." Royalty's attitude was building up and soon she was about to say some bad words in Patios.

"Hold on baby girl. Not so fast." The shorter one tried to reach out for her but suddenly another hand slapped it away.

"Aye. She said no." The girls looked up and saw it was Riley and Huey.

"And who the fuck is you?" The shorter one squared up.

"Someone who will fuck you up." Riley looked at the other man in disgust and stepped forward.

"Relax Reezy." Huey used his brother's street name. Huey didn't have to say much since his presences was threatening enough.

"Nah he wanna be grabbing on my girl and shit."

"And you let your girl walk around with her ass hanging out? Oh I get it, she a hoe hoe." He laughed.

"The fuck did you say-!"

"Wait wait. Did you not hear what he said?" The taller one finally realised. "That's them Freeman brothers, the one that run the gang. Leave them the fuck alone, I am not trying to get killed. Let's bounce." Choosing life over trying to flirt with a gang members girl, he began to drag his friend away. You could tell he was the one actually using his brain.

Riley laughed. "Yeah listen to your bitch." Once they were out the store he turned back to the girls. "You good?"

Royalty walked over to the counter to pay for her stuff. "Yeah I'm good... thanks."

"We should go." Huey spoke up.

* * *

With that, the five of them jumped in the car. They talked about random things before Huey got to the home that the four dancers stayed at.

"You coming to the club tonight?" Jazmine asked.

"Sure. To make sure Raven doesn't try and kill a you." Huey answer.

"That's cold Huey." Caesar answered from the back seat.

"Whatever. I'll see you there." Huey dismissed his friends remark and turned back to Jazmine.

"Sure thing." She smiled at him before leaning forward and kissing him on the cheek. "Bye guys. Royalty, let go of the boy's mouth and come on."

"Cramping my style girl." Royalty commented before wiping her lips. "Deuces." With that, the two got out the car and made their way inside.

"I just had to see all this." Caesar rolled his eyes in disgust before jumping in the front seat.

"Shut up Caesar."

"You know, I don't appreciate all this bullying that has been directed towards me today..."

Huey rolled his own eyes before driving away and make his way towards their own homes.

It had been a long day and Huey had a lot to think about. Jazmine seemed to really be feeling him and he wasn't sure about what to do. He needed some time alone. Time to think. Well, he only had a few hours before needing to go to the club. Hopefully this will give him enough time to think about everything. He needed to clear his head.

* * *

**I split the last two chapters since one would have been way too much, make sure you leave reviews.**

**Shout out to Chel29 for giving me this idea of Jazmine teaching a class so I hope you enjoyed it.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	18. Chapter 18: Empire

"Everyone seemed to have a pretty productive day." Cindy commented as she strapped on her heels.

The girls were getting ready for their first shift at one of Huey's nightclub and all had their own version of black on.

Cindy had on a short, off shoulder black dress, her hair was pulled up into a slick high ponytail and she had on basic black heels.

"So did you. Didn't you go to the new gym you were dying to go to since it opened?" Ming asked.

She wore a black skater dress that came up to her knees. Her hair was also in a ponytail but the ends and two strands at the front were curled.

"I guess we all did some type of exercise today. Is it bad that I miss the pole?" Royalty faked a frown as she applied lip-gloss.

The youngest wore a short black skirt and a black halter crop top. Her hair was the same as in the morning.

"Maybe. I would be lying if I said I didn't miss dancing. Today was so refreshing." Jazmine sighed as she began to pack her bag.

Since her hair was still straight, she decided to leave it out and wear a black, sleeveless, high neck dress that reached above her knees and was laced up at the front, showing her lovely breast.

"Didn't you say the club was opening soon?" Cindy asked.

"Yeah in a few days." Jazmine answered.

"Shouldn't we be preparing for it then?" Ming questioned as they started to check that everything was off and they had everything they needed before they left the house.

"We can sort that out tomorrow. Don't forget we still need to get our outfits too." Cindy pointed out.

"Another excuse to go shopping. I like that." Jazmine smirked as they piled into the car.

"So Cindy, when are you going to get yourself a man because it's been how long since you got some dick?" Royalty laughed from the back seat.

Since Cindy was sitting next to her, she punched her friend in the arm, making her shriek in pain.

"You know what. I'm tired of you hoes." Cindy rolled her eyes. "Also, I know Ming and Jazmine still haven't gotta nothing yet so why you all pressed on me?"

"Because we have options. Why don't you try a lil sum sum with Caesar? You would look cute together." Royalty teased.

"I will push you out of this moving car." Cindy threatened.

"No one is going to get kicked out of this car." Jazmine spoke up.

"Someone might..." She mumbled but the girls still heard and laughed.

"Let's just listen to some music." Ming jumped in as she pulled out the aux cord to hand to Jazmine since she was in the passenger seat.

* * *

The girls finally arrived to the club and took in the exterior. The name 'EMPIRE' was in gold with bright lights surrounding it, making it stand out on the street.

"This shit looks dope." Cindy commented as they made their way towards the door, where 2 security guards were standing. It was currently 7:15 but the club didn't open until 8:30.

"Word." Royalty agreed.

"The club doesn't open until 8:30 ladies." One of the guards said as he held out his hand to stop them.

"We're not here to party, we're here to work." Ming answered the large man.

"I haven't seen you around here before." The female guard looked the girls deeply into their face, trying to see if she knew them but she didn't.

"Huey said we can work here tonight. Raven knows." Jazmine told them and had to hold herself from rolling her eyes when she mentioned the girl who for some reason, instantly didn't like her.

They thought about it for a moment and even shared a look. "We'll let you in but if anything happens, that's on you." The male one chuckled before opening the door and letting the girls inside. They thanked him and walked inside.

"Oh he got money money." Royalty said in shock as she looked around the club.

Everything around them screamed fancy but fun. There was a huge amount of space in the middle of the room which was enough to hold at least 150 people dancing alone. A DJ booth at the far end of the room with bright gold lights all around the front and a man behind it setting up. There were a few girls also dressed in black, moving around the room doing various jobs. That's when they heard Raven giving orders to some people are the bar.

"There's going to be 3 birthday's tonight so anyone with a gold wrist band gets 4 free shots. Make sure you stamp every time they use it to keep track. Don't be giving no extra shit." Raven pointed to the staff who nodded to the information they received. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, hoping today could be as stress free as possible.

That wasn't until she turned to see four new comers and immediately her mood flattened.

'Huey really owes me.' She thought as she walked up to them to unfortunately greet them. She wouldn't have their mistakes mess up her money and her business.

She strutted over and slapped a fake smile across her face.

"Ladies, lovely for you to join us." Raven outstretched her arms in a greeting matter. "Welcome to Empire, it will be a very busy night tonight so I hope you can keep up." The girls faked smiled back, realizing that Raven was trying to be civil in the work place.

"Trust me, we can handle it." Jazmine spoke up first.

"Good. So, what can you do besides take off your clothes?" Raven asked jokingly but they knew she wasn't trying to be funny.

"Shade..." Cindy mumbled causing Ming to try her hardest to hold back her laughter.

"We do way more than that darling. More skills than you will ever be able to do." Royalty screwed her eyebrow together and took a step forward but Jazmine put her hand out to stop her.

"Ming can do bar. We can serve drinks." Jazmine smiled just as fake.

"Perfect. You can spend your time getting to know where things are, I have shit to do." Raven waved before walking off towards what they guessed was the office.

"Ohhh, everyone was on that fake shit just now." Ming joked as walked around the room.

"I'm trying to be civil to get paid baby." Jazmine smirked.

Cindy rolled her eyes. "Fuck that shit, if we gotta scrap we should. Well Jazzy should be the one to do it since she trying to steal your mans."

Jazmine couldn't help but roll her own eyes. She had told her friends about her encounter with Raven when she went to Huey's house. Everyone was ready to say something to her but Jazmine had to remind them that they couldn't do anything since they would be working for her and she's the boy's close friend. Plus, her and Huey wasn't dating so it wouldn't be right if she said something.

"Why does it have to be me?"

"Because she trying to steal your man. I just said that!." Cindy shoved her lightly.

"Trust me, I don't need to fight no girl for a man. I mean, do you see me?" Jazmine did a whole 360 to emphasize that she was that bitch, making her friends cheer in agreement.

Just as they were going to walk around, the door opened again.

"Shhiitt, it's been a min since a nigga has been in here."

They turned to see Huey, Riley, Caesar and Hiro walking in and also immediately, all their grew smiles. It didn't take long for everyone to lock eyes.

"Damn don't you four look fine tonight." Caesar rubbed his hands together as he crept up to Cindy.

"Caesar, stop being creepy." Huey said as he grabbed his friend by the collar to pull him back.

Caesar almost flew backwards from being dragged back, making everyone burst out in laughter.

"Damn nigga you nearly fucked up my swag." He complained as he fixed himself up.

Caesar had on jean shorts, yellow Jordan's and a matching t-shirt. Huey was wearing a plain white t-shirt, black jeans and white air force 1s. Hiro was sporting a purple Black Pyramid jumper, black ripped jeans and purple Jordan's. Riley had on the same thing his brother had on but with a Versace shirt.

"So, you kept your promise." Jazmine looked up at Huey as he stepped closer to her and they shared a smirked.

"I didn't make no promise."

"It sounded like you did."

"If I promise you something, trust me it would be worth your while." Huey told her and a thousand different things ran through her head.

'Best promise me to fuck me good.' Jazmine thought and instantly regretted because her face turned red.

"Do you know what you doing tonight?" Hiro asked them but was mainly looking at Ming who blushed too from Hiro looking at her as if she was a full course meal and he was starving.

"Yeah. Serve some drinks and all that shit." Royalty answered with her hands on her hip and trying to ignore Riley's preeing eyes.

'Girl playing hard to get... ite I see how it is.' The young gangster thought.

"Well there's more to just serving drinks." Huey switched into his 'business' voice which, made them all listen closely.

"And what's that?" Cindy asked.

"You'll be selling some product."

The girls looked shocked.

"I'm sorry what?" Ming eyes grew wide.

"Raven!" Huey called out as he saw her come out of the office.

Raven saw the tall man with the afro and was confused to see him in the club since it has been so long since he had been in there.

"Huey. The fuck is you doing here?" She questioned.

'Probably to perv on these hoes.' She mentally rolled her eyes.

"You didn't tell them about selling?" Huey chose to ignore her question and ask his own.

"Right I forgot." But she didn't really. "You'll be getting a gram of weed and will sell it for $8. Our shit is good so they never just want 1 at a time. If they want four, it's $35. Other than that, do the math. Usually niggas like when they see you take it out your bra so you can hold it there, if not you can find a way." Raven directed her attention to Jazmine who everyone could see she obviously wasn't wearing one but the fact was, none of them were.

"If you need top ups, you come to me or my nigga Reggie over there." She pointed to a dark skin man in the corner of the room that was handing out small bags to the workers. "Make sure you give back the money you get from selling. You don't want to end up like the last bitch that stole some shit." Raven told them cautiously.

"I know I don't need to worry about you four. Raven. Make sure you don't call them by their governments. We promoting the strip club so we don't need people knowing their real names." Huey informed her which was news to the girls but they knew it was the right choice. "We got 45 minutes until the club open let's get shit done."

Raven was going to walk away but decided to talk to someone first.

"Huey. Let me talk to you real quick."

Jazmine heard this and turned to look between the two. Her curious self wanted to follow but another side of her didn't want to be nosy for no reason therefore, she let him go.

"I'll be back." Huey told them but it was more to Jazmine who nodded and watched him walk about.

* * *

10 minutes had passed and Huey had finally come out and didn't look to please but then again, that was just his facial expression.

"You ok?" Jazmine asked as he came over to the group who were talking and basically waiting for the club to open.

"Yeah everything is good." He answered simply.

Jazmine was going to let it go until she saw a small smudge of red lip stick on the back of his shirt on the neck. 'What the fuck was they doing in there?' She raised an eyebrow but didn't let Huey see her questioning look.

Before everyone could settle down, Riley's phone vibrated and saw a message on his phone. "Ay Huey. We needed round the block."

Huey didn't bother questioning who it was and signaled for them to follow him.

"Ladies, we shall be back. Have fun at work." Caesar smiled. They gave each other quick goodbyes before watching the boys walk out.

"Everyone is moving a bit weird today don't you think?" Royalty spoke up first.

"Foreal. I don't understand shit." Cindy added.

"If it's not messing with our money I don't mind." Ming nodded.

Jazmine just sat there quietly think about what has gotten Huey to be so serious and so quick the leave the club. What was happening around the block? Who where they meeting? Why was they meeting? She knew she had no business in the street business but she would be damned if she didn't let her white side take over her curiosity. If she didn't have to work, she would have found herself sneaking behind them.

* * *

The club was popping!

The music was loud and bumping. The drinks were flowing. The people were vibing and the girls were having a good time.

They have never sold weed in their life but they seemed to be doing an amazing job. They were even getting tips left right and center from different people which just motivated them to work harder.

"Have you seen Huey come back yet?" Jazmine asked Royalty over the loud music as they put away dirty cups they had collected. It has been over two hours and they still never came back.

"Nah but you know they will come back soon. They did say." Royalty told her friend; she was just as interested in wondering where Riley was.

"Jazmine, I mean Emerald. Go serve the birthday table in the corner." Raven instructed her as she popped out of nowhere.

Jazmine held back a roll of her eyes before doing as she said. She sighed and made her way through the crowd, trying her best to not bump into the dancers. She finally reached a section of about 8 men, all in high spirits.

"Hi, my names Emerald how can I help-" She stopped when the birthday boy turned around.

"Jazmine?"

"Jayden?" She replied in shock.

Standing before her was her ex-boyfriend, Jayden Russo. He was half Italian and half black, 6 foot 2 and has curly, dark brown hair with the sides shaved off. The two dated for a year and a half but broke up when they turned 17 because they wanted to focus on their studies. Jazmine was a bit heartbroken but she moved on with the help of her girls. Out of her past relationships, this was the only person she had ever said she loved so seeing him here in Chicago was a huge shock. It was the first person from Woodcrest she has ever bumped into in this new city, even after 5 years.

"Damn, JD, you looking good. How have you glowed up when you were already fine as hell in high school?" He smiled as he pulled the shocked girl into an unexpected hug.

"Uh- huh? Jayden what are you doing here?" She eventually hugged back. She hadn't heard that nickname in years since he was the only person who called her that.

"Birthday week. A few of my boys are from here so wanted to show me a good time. What you doing in Chi-town?" He turned his head sideways in a questioning manor.

'I used to love when he did tha- no! Stop it Jazmine Aaliyah Dubois!' She snapped herself back into reality.

"I live here now with my girls. Happy birthday by the way." She answers him, still not knowing how to react to him being right in front of her.

"Thank you, thank you. Oh shit. You still cool with Ming, Cindy and Royalty? You four were thick as thieves, I guess you still are." His smile just continued to grow and it even made Jazmine smile a little. "So, this is where you work?"

'No.'

"Yeah. Well, some part time thing you know." She smiled nervously. She thought she could get away with it but his friend walked over to them and instantly recognize the waitress.

"Oh shit. Nigga how you know Emerald? Damn, I be telling homie about your joint and how fire you and the Gems are! We were gonna roll through this opening weekend. Jay, you see how fine this one girl is? Imagine a whole room of them, butt ass naked!" His friend told him excitedly.

Jazmine's face fell so quickly, you wouldn't even think she was smiling in the first place.

"Ay yo bro. Why don't you go get some more shots? You got like 2 more free shots." Jayden pushed his friend away so he could talk to Jazmine alone. The two stood there silently for a second. "Strip joint?"

Jazmine watch his eyebrow raise and her body grew hot.

"Yeah..."

"And I guess the Gems are your girls..."

"Yeah..."

Jayden saw her embarrassed face and quickly reassured her. "Hey, don't feel embarrassed. You gotta do what I gotta do. No judgement. Wait, here let me put in my number." He somehow found her phone, held it up to her face, causing it to unlock and put his number in and called himself so he got her number. "Now, we can keep in touch."

"Uh sure." She managed to spit out from his sudden actions.

"I would like to take you out some time. You know while I am here. It's crazy because I was actually thinking about moving out here and you may have given another pro to why it would be a good idea." Jayden flashed an award-winning smile her way which once again gave her flash backs to her younger self falling in love with him.

"Uhh ok..." Jazmine hasn't been this speechless in a very long time. She was frozen on the spot and her eyes grew even wider as she saw him step closer to her.

'Move Jazmine!' She screamed to herself but her body wasn't listening.

"Emerald."

They heard a voice behind the girl and she turned to see who it was.

"Huey." She breathed out. "Um, you don't need to call me that. Jayden this my... friend, Huey. Huey, this is my ex-boyfriend Jayden. From high school days, you know how it is." Jazmine quickly reassure him when his face changed at the mention of ex. "Why don't you go over to the bar and I'll meet you over there."

Huey didn't like the idea of leaving Jazmine on her own with her ex but once she laid a hand on his shoulder delicately, he forgot about the man next to him

He nodded and walked away, leaving the two alone again.

"I should get back to work." Jazmine told him.

"Yeah, I hope I see you again JD." He stroked her cheeks seductively and goosebumps popped up all over her body.

"Bye." Was all she could say before practically running away.

Jayden stood there watching Jazmine walk away and couldn't help but sigh in fascination. He couldn't believe he found his high school sweetheart. She was surely as beautiful as he last remembered. Now, he was going to find a way to find her Instagram page just to see what he was missing out on. He needed her in his life again.

"Bro." He heard the same friend as before call behind him, grabbing his attention. "I don't think you should fuck with her."

Jayden looked at his friend in disbelief.

"And why is that?" He asked his friend.

"Coz you didn't see who came over for her? Nigga that is Huey motherfucking Freeman aka Ghost. He run a whole gang up and down in Chicago and ain't someone to fuck with. You see this club, this is his and the one where your girl works, he just brought that shit. I'm telling your bruh, she ain't that one. There's other Chicago girls that will do you some good trust me." His friend advised him before going back to a girl he was preciously talking to.

'Nice try but I don't give a fuck.' Jayden smirked as he raised his glass to his mouth and took a sip of his drink.

Happy birthday to him.

* * *

Over by the bar, Huey saw Jazmine coming back over, looking flustered.

"What did he say? What did he do to you?" Huey jumped up as he saw her face. He was ready to fight if he needed to.

"Nothing nothing. I'm just shocked to see someone from my past that's all." Jazmine sighed as she ran her hands through her straight hair.

"As long as he didn't hurt you."

Jazmine chuckled. "Trust me. He would never hurt me and if he did, I would fuck him up along with my girls."

Huey smirked and knew she was right.

"I think it is time for your break." He told her and whisked her away into the office before she could protest.

"Huey, what are we doing in here?" Jazmine laughed as he sat on the desk and she stood not far from him.

"Break."

Jazmine giggled as his maroon eyes stared at her. She seemed to understand that he got very confident whenever he had liquor in his system.

"I don't need no break, I'm good. I got money to make."

"I will pay you what you will be missing out." Huey smirked, reminding her how much money he had.

Jazmine walked closer to him until there were lightly brushing against each other.

"So, you not going to tell me where you disappeared to? I hate to say this but I did miss you." Jazmine whispered to him despite them being the only ones in the room.

"Just some business as per usual."

"Is that all I'm going to get from you?" She pouted, pushing out her bottom lip.

"You can get this."

Suddenly, Huey pulled her in and placed his lips against her own. Her green eyes rolled to the back of her head as she was hit with his intoxicating smell and delicious lips. Her arms found a way around his shoulders and interlocked her fingers at the back of his neck. This time around, the kiss felt completely different. There was more thought and dedication behind it which turned them both on.

Huey was about to kiss her neck when he remembered how her dress was designed. "Damn why you gotta wear this dress?" He complained as he went back to her lips.

Jazmine laughed between his lips. "Shut up and kiss me." And he did just that. He even changed positions so that he stood between her open legs.

His hands ran over her thighs and he even gripped on them, making Jazmine want to bit his lip in retaliation.

"Jazzy girl!" They heard a knock at the door and both groaned in annoyance. "Sorry to break up your fuck fest but Raven is coming over and I am not trying to get in no fight today. My ass looks too good tonight." They heard Royalty tell them.

Jazmine sighed and pulled away but Huey wasn't having in and pulled her lips back over to his.

"Hmm Huey. As much as I want to keep doing this and have you take me here on the desk, I don't want to be fighting either."

Huey rolled his eyes but backed away anyway, allowing her to jump off the desk.

She walked over to the mirror to fix herself up and not like she was kissing all over a desk. Huey walked back over to her and wrapped his arms around her waist and began kissing her shoulder.

"Huueeeyyy. Stop it." She giggled.

"I can't help it."

"Huey, I saw you-" They heard the door open and turned to see Raven standing there shocked. "Oh. You kissing my staff now?"

Huey rolled his eyes. "Don't worry about us. Jazmine, I'll see you later." He gave her another soft kiss on his lips which caught her off guard.

"Yeah. Bye." She replied in shock. Every man today was catching her slacking and she didn't know how to feel about it. However, it was crazy to say that she wasn't excited about where one would lead to.

Jazmine walked past Raven who sported a fake smile and made her way back to the bar, trying her best not to scream out loud in excitement.

She just kissed Huey Freeman and she couldn't wait to do it again.

* * *

**Here is another chapter. I hope you enjoyed it so make sure you leave a review. Let me know what you think about Jayden too.**

**I don't know if you heard but Boondocks is getting 2 seasons! I need to binge watch the other seasons, I can't wait. They need to get back all original cast, RIP Charlie Murphy.**

**If you need time to pass, you can read my other story 'Trials And Tribulations' which next chapter will be up soon too.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	19. Chapter 19: Dealing With Problems

"Pause. Rewind. Take it back. You did what with who?" Royalty screamed.

"And saw who?" Ming added.

"And they said what?!" Cindy ended.

As always, the girls were sitting at home, talking about last night's events. Ming was telling them that some guy kept spilling his life story to her drunkenly at the bar, even when she told him that it was none of her business. The tea was hot but she didn't want to see him sobbing in her face as she poured drinks. Royalty had two girls bet on who could get her to sleep with them so throughout the whole night, they were staring and talking to the young girl. No matter how many times Royalty would tell the girls vividly how much she was only attracted to males, they still tried their best to purse her. She spent most of the night running from them. Then there was Cindy who actually seemed to have a good time. Her and Caesar engaged in very interesting conversation once he came back and even said he wasn't half bad. He made her laugh without trying too hard but she wouldn't let anyone know that. She has too much pride to admit to it.

It was all down to Jazmine who just couldn't stay away from drama. Seeing her ex while also making out with Huey in the space of a couple of minutes definitely topped them all.

"I can't believe Jayden is here... is he as fine as he was back in high school?" Cindy asked mysteriously.

Jazmine groaned but answered anyway. "I hate to say this but he was looking good. Had that birthday glow about him." She really didn't want to admit it but the Lord did bless the boy with good looks that it would be foolish is someone tried to argue against it.

"What happened to the 'fuck him' attitude we had when you broke up?" Ming crossed her arms.

"Times have changed Ming." Cindy laughed.

"Anyway, it's not like I want to get back with him. I moved on a long time ago."

"Ok then so let's talk about Huey Freeman and how you both nearly fucked in the office." Royalty jumped in after a long time.

Jazmine once again groaned; she has been getting a lot of attention lately. "We just kissed for a while before you came and ruined it."

Royalty pretended to be hurt. "I am sorry if I warned you so shit wouldn't be awkward. Give a girl credit, ungrateful bitch."

"I know but guys... I was thinking about when he first arrived to the club and went to talk to Raven, he came out with a lip stick stain on him." Jazmine told them nervously. She forgot to mention that part.

Silence.

No one said anything or moved. All three girls' mouths were hanging open from this new information Jazmine was telling them. The strawberry blonde looked at her friends wondering why they were frozen. Did she say something wrong? Did she break them?

"Um guys..." Jazmine proceeded to wave her hand in front of their faces to see if they would snap out of it and it seemed to work when she saw them blinking.

"I guess I gotta commit murder today." Cindy spoke up first. Her face screwed up in anger as she looked at her best friend.

"There's no need for that." Jazmine rolled her eyes but wouldn't be lying if she said she wasn't intrigued.

"Maybe Cindy is right for once-"

"Shade."

"You can't let him get away with that. How dare he mess with her then you in the same place on the same day. That's some bullshit." Ming ranted.

"I think you best ask him before you jump to conclusions." Royalty shrugged.

Cindy and Ming looked at Royalty as if she was crazy.

"Since when was you against violence?" Ming questioned.

"Since she got that Freeman dick. They both dick-notized them." Cindy smirked at them.

Jazmine just found it funny that they automatically assumed she had seen that part of him. They haven't gotten anywhere near there.

"Royalty is right. I have to talk to him. If he is trying to be serious, I need to know that him and Raven are nothing at all. I don't have time to be chasing anyone." Jazmine concluded and everyone nodded in agreement.

"Now that that is over, can we do our shopping now. We have a day and a half to make up a routine for Saturday." Royalty spoke up again.

"Ok who are you and what have you done to Royalty?" Cindy looked at her friend shocked.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Was the answer they got and they all just laughed.

With that, the girls eventually left their home to get their things sorted while also discussing what they could do for their stage entrance. Jazmine had to hold her tongue on the topic while also creating different scenarios in her head on how the dreaded but needed conversation would go. She hoped it ends well.

* * *

Later that night, on the other side of town, there were a group of 10 men dressed in all black standing outside a warehouse.

The leader watched intensely at the activity happening outside.

'5 men outside, easy.' He observed before turning back to his people.

"HO, I want you on the roof. If you see anyone coming in, you know what to do." Huey instructed Hiro who nodded in response before running to the building not far to get in position. He was going to be their sniper. "Reezy and MC will lead the rest of you inside. Reezy, you will take 3 and go around the front. MC, you will take the rest and go in by that side door, I will go in the back. When you hear a gun shot, that is when I want you all to go. Do you understand?" Huey instructed his men, which they all understood.

Before Huey could go, he stopped at his brother.

"You good to go Ghost? I don't think it's a good idea for you to go in on your own." Reezy said casually as he began inspecting his AK47 he held in his hand.

"They call me Ghost for a reason. I have never seen you so concerned." Ghost smirked.

Immediately, the younger man got defensive. "Man shut the fuck up. I only said something because mom was calling about your ass, I don't care about you, that shit gay."

Ghost just rolled his eyes at his brother but held out his closed fist towards him. "See you on the other side."

Riley basically punched his brothers closed fist. "Whatever nigga."

This was how they showed concern for each other, it was just the brother's way as they were not affectionate ones, especially to each other but would still hurt anyone who tries to harm the other. Whenever they go on 'missions' like this, that was their way of saying goodbye and making sure the other makes it out alive.

They both smirked as they pulled up the bandana that was resting on their neck around their mouth. It was black and had the outline of a panthers mouth as if it was roaring. Everyone in the gang got one once they joined so whenever you see it, you know who you were dealing with. Huey and Riley got theirs for Christmas when they were 5 and 7 from their uncle which their mother was fuming about and their father just laughed, he thought it was cute. It was too big for them anyway so they never put it on again until they actually joined.

Ghost ran somehow silently, around the parked vehicles as his way of getting to the back entrance without being noticed. He used his training to rely on his sense of hearing since it was dark and he was focusing on staying hidden. He stopped behind a black Range Rover and peered over it. The same five men were talking and laughing in Russian and was fully unaware that they were about to die in the next few minutes. Oh well.

Ghost got to the back and saw there was one with his back towards him smoking.

'First kill.' Ghost thought. He crept from the last car and tiptoed up the man who was in his own world. He reaches into his pocket and pulled out a glistening dagger. A 13th birthday present he got from the same uncle, who the mother now says she dislikes jokingly because of his presents and influence. What made it even worse, his father got Huey a three set katana that he was asking for since he was 10. He always carried at least 1 of these items.

Within seconds, his hand was over the smoker's mouth who then began to panic and thrust around but Ghost was quicker. Before he could get elbowed in the stomach, Huey pulled out his trusted dagger and ran it across the man's throat. The gurgling sound of the man choking on his own blood hit Ghost's ears. Deciding he didn't need to hold onto the body any longer, he watched it collapse to the ground and the area around him flood with blood.

Ghost heard someone coming to the door and hide behind it, knowing they would come out and see the body.

The door opened and a man walked out, lighting his own cigarette, oblivious. "Trevor, I saw-" He paused when he finally realised the body on the floor. "What the-" He was about to run inside and scream but Ghost once again, beat him to it. He jumped out of his hiding spot and drove the dagger straight into his neck with his friends' blood still present on the blade. You could see it poking out on the other side of the neck demonstrating how much force Ghost put into it. Knowing the man will bleed out in a few seconds, Ghost removed the dagger, stabbed him in the chest for good measure and let another body drop to the ground.

Not wasting any time, Ghost ran inside. Three men were present.

"Hey!" One shouted and from there, everything went into chaos. Two of the men pulled out their guns, ready to shoot Ghost but he managed to get out of the line of fire before it made contact with his skin. He rolled to his right and grab the third man, using him as a human shield. Bullets flew his way but not one touched him, it all collided with the man he held onto.

"Ahhhhh!" The human shield screamed before falling silent, dead.

Shocked at what they did, they froze, giving Ghost enough time to pull out his own pistol and shoot the other two, hitting them right in the skull. Once again, he threw the dead man to the side and continued making his way further inside, keeping his eyes and ears open.

Not far, he could hear the sounds of gun shots and shouting which he understood that his people were now inside, shooting up the whole place. Knowing he has to find them quickly, he sped up but still paid attention to his surroundings.

He turned left and a few men were there. One threw a punch at his head which he ducked under and sent an uppercut straight to his chin, making the man fall on his back knocked out cold. Another tried to stab him in the stomach so he grabbed his hand and snapped it in two. The man screamed in pain before falling to his knees, before Ghost could make sure this one didn't get back up, another ran over and attempted to kick him in the head. Ghost let go of the one he was holding and threw him in the direction of the one who was coming at him. Seeing him stubble, Ghost ran up the wall and flew off doing a superman punch into the man's skull. Once his left foot landed, he jumped back into the air and roundhouse kicked the enemy in the chest who dropped to the floor coughing in pain. Ghost pulled out his gun once again and shot them all before moving further in the building.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, he was grabbed. One on the left, the other on the right. They restrained him using all their strength but Ghost is not only stronger but has more skill. He managed to do a back flip out of their hold and did a cartwheel to give them some distance. The man on the right ran at him with a knife but Ghost had his own. He jumped out the way and stabbed the man in his ribs who then stumbled back in pain and holding onto his bleeding side. The other man pulled out his gun to shoot Ghost but the gang leader slid under it and kneed him in the leg, making him fall to his knees. Once at the same height, he grabbed the hand that had the gun in it and used it to shoot his friend before forcing his hand towards himself and shooting himself in the head. Their bodies pilled and Ghost moved on.

He finally made it to the main room and saw there was a whole shoot out happening. He same his people on the left and far end of the room, ducking and shooting at the Russians who were closer to him. Aiming his gun, he effortlessly shoots as many as he could and he managed to catch two before they started shooting in his direction. He rolled in front of a car that just so happened to be in there and took cover.

"Ay yo Ghost!" He heard over the gun fire. He saw MC ducking then standing up and shooting before ducking down again. They looked at each other and nodded.

Ghost jumped up and ran as fast as he could towards MC as he provided cover. Once together, Ghost immediately jumped back into action, shooting at the enemy.

"Any trouble?" Ghost asked as they both ducked behind the row of barrels they were stationed behind, breathing slightly heavy.

"Nothing we couldn't handle." MC smirked at his friend and leader. Before Ghost could reply they heard Reezy's voice from the other side of the room.

"Ok, I'm reloaddiiinnnggg!" His crazed laugh rang just as much as the bullets did as they saw him stand and spray bullets in the Russians direction. Thanks to Reezy as well as the rest of the gang, their rivals fell to the cold concrete floor, dead.

The room stood still as The Panthers slowly walked out of their positions, staying alert just in case one pretended to be dead.

"Everything good on your part Reezy?" Ghost asked as they stepped over the dead bodies.

"Yeah nigga." Reezy smiled hard as his eyes laid on the context on the table in the middle of the room. "Oh shit..."

There in front of them was about 60 kilos of cocaine still wrapped in their large packaging as well as bags of money, at least a good hundred thousand in there.

"Did you know there was this amount of shit in here?" MC questioned just as shocked at the contents.

"No... I was told that there was at least 35 kilos and only a few hundreds of money." Ghost said shocked as he looked at the three bags of money.

"Maybe they stocked up last minute, tried to move their shit but we got here before they could." MC suggested as he used his gloved hand to bag up the drugs with the help of the other guys.

"Shhhittt, them niggas gonna be mad as hell." Reezy commented as he stared at the money.

"That's not my problem." Ghost commented as he zipped up the bags much to Reezy's protest. "Let's go." Ghost instructed as he grabbed one of the money bags. Reezy grabbed the other as well as MC while the other men that came with them grabbed the four bags of cocaine. As they were walking out, there was a man crawling slowly towards a gun not far from his reach as blood leaked from his wounds. Without even skipping a beat, Ghost pulled out his gun and shot the man in the head. He didn't even look at the victim or stop and look, he just continued his steps.

As they arrived outside, they saw HO standing with a different gun. He had already gotten their large black van and was waiting on the side with back doors open, waiting for them to get in.

"I see you had fun without me." HO smirked as he saw the bags and the blood all over Ghost that glistened in the moonlight.

"Acting like your ass didn't have fun out here." MC shared a knowing smirked as he looked at the extra dead bodies littered across the ground.

"I guess you can say that." HO laughed before jumping in the drivers seat. Ghost joined him up front while the rest went in the back.

HO casually drove away from the warehouse filled with dead people while Ghost sat silently looking in the distance.

"What did you find? You came out with more bags than what was expected." HO questioned.

Ghost let out a deep breath before explaining their findings which left his friend shocked too.

"Holy shit. Are you serious? They are not going to he happy about that." The Asian laughed.

"Just like I said before. Its not my problem. They want to start some shit, we're ready." HO could hear the hardness and determination in Ghost's voice and knew he meant every word he said.

The rest of the journey would have been in silence until Ghost's phone started to ring.

"Who's that?" HO asked as he looked at Ghost's now calm facial expression.

Ghost ignored him and chose to answer the phone.

"Jazmine, it's a bad time right now." Huey answered once he heard her voice.

"Wow, you just going to ignore you're girl?" Hiro shook his head jokingly.

"Shut up and keep you eyes on the road." Huey moved the phone away from his mouth, hoping Jazmine wouldn't hear him.

"_Shut up? Huey! Who the fuc-" _Jazmine started but Huey cut her off.

"Jazmine. I was talking to Hiro." Huey rolled his eyes even though she couldn't see.

"_Oh…"_

The man sighed. "I'm doing some business right now, can't you call back in like an hour or two?"

"_No. We need to talk now." _She answered him just as determined.

"Why?"

"_I need to know if you're fucking Raven on the side."_

Huey moved the phone away from his face, and scrunched his face up in confusing. This caused Hiro to pay attention again because he has never seen Huey pull that face before.

"What-"

Before he could answer, she continued.

"_I see how she be staring at you like you have just been fucking. And why is it that every time I am around, she pulls you away. Lets not forget about last night and your lip stick stain. You're lucky my ass was distracted by my ex and your good ass kisses because I would have pulled your bitch ass up on it. I do not have time to be a mans side piece or the main chick that knows her man has a side chick. Make up you mind!"_

Jazmine was talking so loud, even Hiro could hear, causing him to burst out in laughter. She was a brave one.

Huey sat there in silence for a second, wondering what just happened. This was not what he expected Jazmine to be calling about so late.

"I only go away with Raven because I hope she's talking about business and not some other shit. Me and her are dead and have been for years. I guess she might be jealous or something I don't know." Huey began as he heard the other line was silent, well silent from Jazmine, he could hear whispering from her friends in the back but decided to ignore it. "The lip stick came from when she tried to kiss my neck but I moved and told her I wasn't ok with that. Hopefully she got that message this time since I went off on her for a good 3 minutes. And I kissed you because I wanted to. Fuck your ex, his time has passed which is why he's an ex. I got you now, no one else." Huey concluded.

The other end of the phone went silent again.

'She must have muted herself.' Huey thought as he saw they pulled up to their new location.

"Jazmine." He tried to get her attention back.

"_Huh, oh yeah umm."_ She stuttered, shocked at his forwardness again. _"Prove it."_ She built her courage up again.

"What."

"_Prove you want me."_ She answered again

"Ok. Make sure you're ready by 12 tomorrow."

"_But I have to-"_

"You said prove it, let me prove it." He cut her off again.

After a while of contemplating, she replied back. _"Fine."_

"Good. Night Jazmine."

"_Bye…"_

They hung out and Huey jumped out the van before Hiro could park properly.

"Ay!" Hiro called to his boss. "Jazmine really got you strung huh."

Hearing this, Huey paused in his steps. He hadn't put much thought into it.

"Let's just count this money." He replied. Ghost walked to the back and opened up the van for the rest to get out.

"Damn nigga finally." Reezy jumped out the van with the bag still in his hand. "We could hear your ass on the phone, I guess Mariah's ass got you on lock." He laughed.

"Why are you both on my dick today? We got business to handle." Ghost face hardened hoping they would drop the conversation.

As he walked inside, HO, Reezy and MC stared at the older Freeman in disbelief.

"Did you hear his conversation?" HO asked as they closed up the van.

"Yeah. As much as he doesn't want to admit it, he is definitely on lock. This nigga really all over her, in a short space of time. She must be a witch or something." MC laughed as they walked inside the building.

"Whatever nigga. All I know is that after this, I got some pussy to fuck as soon as we're done." Reezy smirked.

MC raised an eyebrow. "You just as bad as your brother. You always talk about Royalty like that but we all know you want her all to yourself so stop playing with her."

Reezy shrugged, now not liking the attention on him. "It's not even like that. We have an understanding. We just fuck, nothing else."

"Let's see how long that shit last." HO laughed as they walked inside.

When they got inside, Ghost was already sorting out the money using machines to count it and rubber bands to wrap up every hundred.

"You couldn't wait." Reezy smirked as he joined his brother.

"It's been a long night." Ghost answered, not taking his eyes off the table.

"Alright whatever."

For the next hour or so, they all sat there counting the money and sorting it out. The money was all in different notes so it took them longer to organize it all out but once they got the flow of it, it became easier.

"600 for you all." Huey handed out the rolled-up money to the men that helped they raid the warehouse who then thanked him and left to go home, leaving only four left.

"How much we got left?" Reezy asked.

"$19466." Hiro answered. With the reminder of the money, they shared it out equally. Usually, Huey is expected to get more but today he was feeling generous.

"I would sit and have a drink with yall but I got a girl to get. Deuces." Reezy backed away quickly after collecting his cash as he saw it was already coming up to three and he didn't want Royalty to stay up waiting for him.

MC shook his head as the crazy 23-year-old ran out. "And he claims he isn't whipped. You know I can't stand the both of you. Stubbornness and in denial must run in the family because you two are clueless as fuck."

Huey sighed in frustration. "Caes. Why are you so pressed about us and them girls?" Huey asked annoyed.

"Because nigga. We can see these are not just regular girls. They know how to handle their own. Imagine how it looks for any girl like Jazmine to have you on ropes and cuss you out without you correcting them. I have seen you do that shit many times, you don't take disrespect lightly. Just get your shit straight. I'm sure they know how to fight and they obviously don't give a fuck about who you is. Just think about it. Anyway, you and Jazmine would have cute kids." Caesar teased at the end which was not what they expected to hear. He patted his friend back before leaving with Hiro not far behind him who just gave a knowing look as a way of saying to listen to Caesar.

Huey sat there looking at the remaining bags left on the table. It had been a very long night and he was still covered in blood. The drugs would stay here overnight until one of his people disposed of it.

Just as he was about to leave, there was a knock at the door.

"Come in." Huey called out with his finger resting on his gun. Anyone trying to kill him wouldn't knock but just to be sure.

The door slowly opened to reveal someone he needed to talk to but not now.

"Raven…" Huey sighed obviously tired.

"Wait, let me talk." She held her hand up and he could see in her eyes that she was practically begging him to hear her out. He nodded and continued. "I'm sorry. About everything. I don't know what came over me these past few days and I don't know why it took me so long to pull myself up on it. You know me Huey so you know this is out of character of me. I haven't show you the respect you deserved as my boss and as my friend. Tell Jazmine I'm sorry for giving her a hard time too, I was just being cautious which I still will be until I am 100% sure they are not trying to screw this gang over. I understand if you want to hand the business over to someone else… I'll just see myself out." Raven ended her apology and Huey was shocked. This girl was as stubborn as him so her saying sorry was crazy.

"Wait…" Raven was about to walk out when she heard him speak and slowly turned around to face him, scared for what he would say. "Thank you for saying sorry, I'll let Jazmine know what you said. What made you apologies?" He asked.

Raven sighed and sat on the table across from him. "I was sorting out funeral arrangements for my cousin and I broke down crying. I wished I saw her more often, to make sure she stayed out of trouble but I didn't. Now's she's gone, I don't want to lose anymore people on bad terms. We live in a dangerous fucking world Huey. I don't want to see anymore friends swallowed up by it." Raven answered, tearing up a bit thinking about her deceased family member.

Huey rose from his spot and walked over to Raven. She held a breath wondering what he would do next. He stepped in front of her and let out a deep breath. This day was just getting more complicated than it had to be.

"Ok. We're cool. Plus, no one can run a club better than you, that's why you manage it." Huey smirked at her and she smiled at him. In excitement, she jumped up and hugged him tightly while he just stood there as he usually would.

Realising what she did, she quickly jumped away from him. "Sorry. Wait, ewww you couldn't have told me you got blood on you?" She frowned and stepped back, checking herself to see if any blood passed onto her.

Huey smirked. "It's dry."

Raven looked at him in disbelief. "Nigga that don't mean shit. I hate you, bye!" The brown skin girl walked out the room shaking her head at the only remaining person left in the room. She was glad she managed to clear the air between them two, he was always someone she would love and respect and recent;y, she hasn't been showing that. She needed to clear everything up with her friend and boss.

The young man looked around the room, guessing he was now alone. He needed to shower and sleep. Shower and sleep. That sounded heavenly to him.

He grabbed the bags of cocaine and hid it just so it was out of sight, that would be sorted tomorrow. He packed up his things and made his way to his car to drive to the comfort of his home.

It had been a very long day.

Planning the robbery. Doing the robbery. Jazmine questioning him. Counting money. Lecture from Caesar and then Raven's apology. He couldn't go one day without some shit happening. He needed a day off.

What made it worse, he had no clue what to do with Jazmine so he guessed he would just wing it.

Wish him luck.

* * *

**I hope you enjoyed the little action in this chapter, I tried my best and I'm going to try and make them longer so you can get more out of each chapter. Thank you for all your reviews, I can't wait to hear more from you all.**

**Lool I felt bad for Raven so maybe it's Jayden we have to look out for now who knows.**

**Guest: I wouldn't really say his character is based on Ghost from Power because Huey is much smarter but I just needed to find a street name that would fit Huey and I just so happen to be watching Power as I was thinking about it.**

**Bulmas Ego: Huey finally told her about the lipstick. Well she told him about it so she found it and made her point loud and clear that she ain't no side chick.**

**Chel29: Thank you so much for your reviews!**

**Your Hitta: Jayden will be making an appearance soon, stay tuned to see how it goes. After this chapter, do you still want to slap Raven? I think she might be changing, who knows.**

**Guest: I think all of the above and hopefully Jazmine doesn't have to fight Raven loool.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	20. Chapter 20: Ride Alongs

Huey woke up a little sore the next day. It had been so long since he had to go into his full 'kill mode' so his body was feeling it.

'I have to start working out more.' He lectured himself as he rolled his shoulder in circles. He checked the time and saw he had two hours to take Jazmine... somewhere. He had no idea where. 'Why would I drag myself into this?' He questioned himself and ran a hand through his face and unpicked hair.

He swung his legs out his bed and went straight to his work out room. There was a black punching bag on the side of the mats so he went there first. He stepped in front of it and got into his stance and focused on one spot. Everything was still.

Seconds later, he exploded into trained punches and kicks. He only had on tracksuit bottoms so anyone there would see the tightening of his biceps and triceps as he flexed and relaxed after each extension of the arm that made contact with the bag. His body slowly began to gloss in sweat as he did quick movements.

Left. Right. Right. Uppercut. Elbow. High kick.

Huey delivered random sequences to build his strength and skill up. The years of training helped him be as powerful as he was today. He has never lost a fight since he was 8 and he wasn't planning on looking back.

He stayed at the bag for another 10 minutes, practiced movements with his favourite katana on the mat and did some weights. He did this all for a good 40 minutes which was something he needed. Covered in sweat, he took a much needed shower to get himself fresh and clean.

Once he stepped on the shower, he threw on a red t-shirt with a panther on the front, black jeans and some black Tims. He still had a good hour before he went for Jazmine so decided to do his round of business in hopes that less people would bother him throughout the day but he knew that was near to impossible. For some reason, he knew today was going to be a crazy day, making him think if he should cancel his plans with Jazmine. However, he couldn't bring himself to.

'I guess I just got to find a way around it.' He sighed before pulling out his phone to make various calls.

* * *

Jazmine Dubois was currently sitting on her bed in only a towel from being fresh out of the shower. She was staring at her phone contemplating about how she should reply to the text hovering on her screen.

_Jayden: Hey JD, I really hope we can catch up soon! I really do miss you. You were that girl back in high school, I bet you're still holding that down now here in Chicago. I know you have your grand opening tomorrow night but I don't know if I am able to go, you probably wouldn't want to see me there anyway. It's early and you might still be sleeping since I saw on your snapchat (sound like a stalker, sorry) that you and the girls had a long day but just let me know if you're available tomorrow afternoon. I would love to take you out to lunch. Later JD. ~wink emoji~ ~heart emoji~_

Jazmine sighed thinking about what to do. She had no idea. Jayden was such a sweet boy well man now but things with Huey was about to get very interesting. The kiss and the phone call were nothing she had experience before. Jayden didn't take charge the way Huey did and she didn't know how to feel about it, it was all exciting to her. The idea of being with a drug dealer was thrilling and butterflies was flying in her stomach.

Another text popped up.

_Huey: I'll see you in an hour._

Plain and simple. He didn't tell her where they were going, how she would dress, nothing. She decided to settle on some black ripped jeans, yellow vans and a black crop top. Her hair was pulled into two afro puffs and two strands of curls were on the side of her face.

Just as she finished apply her lip gloss there was a knock at the door.

"Come in!" She called out.

In walked in Royalty who looked just as much ready to leave out herself. She had on black leggings, an oversized white t-shirt and white Air Max's.

"So, where you off to?" Jazmine asked with a smirk, already having a feeling what she was going to say.

Royalty innocently swung her leg. "You know just... some normal things."

"Normal things? Really? You gotta come better than that." Jazmine raised an eyebrow to her friend.

"Fine... you know Marcus?"

"Dark skin, fine as fuck, tall with the cornrows Marcus?" Jazmine clarified.

"Yeah him. He's taking me out for lunch."

Jazmine looked at her shocked. "But what about Riley? Aren't you two doing a thing with each other?"

Royalty flopped onto Jazmine's bed, careful to not crush her 26-inch, pitch black, straight wig. "Yes but we're just sleeping together, I doubt it's going to lead onto anything serious. He doesn't seem like he wants to have an actual relationship." She shrugged.

"Have you asked him?"

"No."

"Then how do you know? He might change." She reasoned.

"Well, I guess I'm gonna have to see how he changes. If he ever does. As of now, I shall go and get my free food." Royalty smirked.

"Wow. You're so trash!" Jazmine called out as she watched Royalty walk away.

"Learned it from your ass bitch!" Was the reply she got.

Jazmine shook her head; she didn't blame her for thinking that way so she didn't say much on it. Royalty was a grown woman and could make her own decision, Jazmine wasn't going to judge her for that.

"Jazzy! Your man is here!" She heard Cindy scream from downstairs.

Jazmine's eyes grew wide as she saw he was early.

'Why you worried? You're ready anyway.' She scowled herself.

"Coming!" She replied. She grabbed her yellow shoulder purse and skipped down the stairs. "Hey Huey!" She smiled. Jazmine took a good look at him and made the conscious decision to say this man never had an off day.

"Jazmine." He greeted. Huey looked at the woman in front of him knew she could do no wrong.

"Have fun." Cindy smirked as she pushed the two out the door.

"Cindy!" She screamed as the door shut behind her. "Have I mentioned my friends are annoying?" She said to Huey as they made their way down the steps.

He smirked. "I may have heard you comment on it a few times." He walked in front of her so he could open the door for her.

"I guess chivalry isn't dead." She laughed as she stepped into his car.

The first few minutes of the car ride was silent and Jazmine was dying to find out where they were going.

"Huey."

"Jazmine."

"Where we going?" She asked curiously.

Huey took a quick look at her spotless face. "Some where." He smirked.

"And that somewhere?"

"Don't worry." The smirk still didn't leave his face as he continued to drive. Jazmine sighed in frustration which quickly turned into an uneasy look as another message popped up on her phone.

_Jayden: Hey JD, sorry if I seemed a bit forward earlier but I still hope I can take you out today maybe?_

Huey saw her sudden change of face. "Who's that?" He asked as her fingers are hover over her keyboard.

"Just the guy you saw at the club before you, uh, pulled me away." Jazmine got quick flashbacks to when they were back at Empire making out, before Raven came in. The small smirk that grew on his face showed that he was remembering too. "He's an ex but that was in high school so whatever was there is dead." She, for some reason, felt as if she needed to reassure him once again that she was completely available.

"Good to know." He nodded as he continued to drive who knows where. He was just going to see where the wind took him.

"I guess Raven wants to slit my throat even more now." Jazmine joked but was 95% serious. She may act tough but Jazmine honestly knew Raven could cause serious harm within seconds. The girl was in a gang with Huey and everyone knew they could all fight.

"No actually." Jazmine's eyes grew wide. "She said she knew she was out of line and all that. She just wasn't used to all four of us but mostly me, being into any girl like I have with you. Doing funeral arrangements for her cousin brought out an angry side of her. Raven was just making sure you weren't trying to fuck everyone over and mess up what we have worked so hard to keep. So, you don't need to worry about your throat being slit." Huey explained.

Jazmine sat there shocked. She thought that Raven would keep a grudge as she seemed like a girl who would.

"Are you sure she was being serious?" Jazmine gave him a questioning look.

"Yes Jazmine. Now-" Huey started but was cut off by his phone ringing. "Fuck." He said as he saw the name pop up.

"I don't want you to be pulled over for being on your phone. I will just stay quiet; they won't even know I am here." Jazmine sent him a reassuring smiling. Huey took a glance over to her before answered the phone.

"Yo." Huey answered. Jazmine saw his face screw up and knew he was ready to take in every word which made her believe it was 'business'.

"Ay yo Ghost. No one can drop that package off." The person named 'CJ' replied.

"What do you mean no one can do it? That's why I have three of you niggas to do that shit." Huey eyebrows were practically running away from his hairline from how deep his scowl was.

"I know man. I gotta get my daughter from school 'coz she sick, Ray Ray is with is mama and May is helping Alex with some shit."

"Fuck..." Huey sighed as he pulled over into a random parking lot. "Don't worry, I'll get it done."

"Are you sure boss? I know you haven't done it in a minute." CJ replied shocked.

"Yes, nigga don't worry. I'll get it sorted. Go get your daughter." Huey rubbed his forehead in annoyance. He couldn't blame them for having things to do but at all times it could have happened, it happened when he was with Jazmine. He uplifted her from her house last minute and now he couldn't take her to where ever he was going to end up. "I'm sorry Jazmine, I know you was looking forward to today but I got some shit to handle. I will drop you at your house first."

"No."

Hearing this, Huey turned towards her neutral facial expression and for the first time, it was hard for him to read.

"Where do you want me to drop you then?" Huey asked, generally confused but open to ideas.

"I'm coming with you. You said you were going to take me somewhere so forget your last plan and let's do this. It sounded very important so I don't want you wasting any time bringing me home so drive." Jazmine innocently smiled at him.

"Jazmine. This isn't just some normal job I'm doing. Remember I run a whole gang, nothing I do is pretty." Huey tried to explain to her as best he could without offending her.

Jazmine rolled her eyes. "Huey. I will be a good girl and listen to what you say and stay out of the way when I need to. I won't touch anything and plus, I want to see who Ghost is. You have seen who Emerald is, it's mine time to see your other person."

Huey sighed and thought of it for a second. She didn't say much but for some reason, it was very convincing. "Fine. Just listen to me, I don't want you to get hurt."

"Yaay!" Jazmine cheered and clapped as he drove back onto the main road. This time, he was driving faster than usual. She decided to turn on the radio and it didn't take long for her to find a good station. Chris Brown ft H.E.R - Come Together began to play as they drove down the streets. The smooth song put the two in tranquillity, which Huey was shocked that he felt himself actually listening to the song since he was very picky on his music choice.

Just like their date, Jazmine pulled out her phone to go on snapchat which was the perfect time for when the chorus rolled back around.

"And I want you babe. Ooh, I can't lie. And I want you babe. If we could, then we should just come together babe." Jazmine softly sang along. At some point, she managed to put the camera on Huey without him realising. After a few other poses, she stopped recording, added a caption and posted it to her story, happy about the content.

* * *

Another 10 minutes passed and Jazmine realised the change of scenery. The area was now deserted and quiet with little to no one around. That's when a tall dark building came into view.

"Woah..." She whispered as she looked at it. It was a warehouse but it looked terrible.

'Is it supposed to look this bad?' She thought.

"Inside looks better." Huey smirked as he took the keys out of the ignition.

"I'm sure it is." She cheekily stuck out her tongue, making Huey shake his head at her childish ways.

"Stay close." He told her as they walked towards the door. Huey knocked. "Open."

And just like that, it opened.

"How did he know...?" She pointed confused, as they walked inside. She didn't even see the guy behind the doors shocked look as he laid eyes on her.

"Everyone knows my voice by now."

"But your ass doesn't talk." She lightly shoved him.

"Funny Jazmine. Come on." He said quickly as they were walking past a main room where a few of his people were sitting. Huey hoped they wouldn't notice him but they did.

"Wait, is that Ghost? With a girl!"

"Oh shit! That nigga crazy."

"Damn she fine."

"That ass doe."

"I guess we shouldn't disturb him for a good hour."

Were just a few comments they unfortunately had to hear. Jazmine found it hilarious but Huey found it embarrassing that his members were acting like they have never seen a girl before.

"Ignore them." Huey told her as he reached out to grab her hand and pull her to another room which just made the comments grow in volume.

"Aww I wanna say hi. They sound fun." Jazmine exaggeratedly frowned.

"I would prefer you not."

Huey opened up a door and instantly Jazmine was shocked. Hiro was there with stacks of money counting it all. She hasn't even seen this much money at a good night at the club.

"Hi Hiro." She waved.

He had to do a double take when he saw an even larger afro pop into the room.

"Jazmine? What are you doing here?" He asked as he looked between Huey who wasn't paying any attention and collected the bags he needed.

"Oh yeah know. Doing a ride along." She innocently said as she walked over to the table full of money.

"Ride along? Damn Huey." Hiro saw Huey pick up the four bags of cocaine and was confused to why he had it. "Where you taking it?" He asked.

"To the drop off. The others couldn't do."

"Strange... Alright. Later."

Huey nodded Hiro's way and made his way straight out the warehouse with Jazmine trailing along.

"You want me to hold one of the bags?" Jazmine asked.

"No, I'm fine."

"You sure?"

"Very. I don't want you to be carrying this shit anyway." He told her as he loaded up the car, they got back in and began to drive.

"What's in the bag and where are we going?" She asked curiously.

Huey took a quick look over at her. "You don't wanna know."

"You know, I really do. I have a very curious mind. I get that from my mother. Plus, I wanna know what 'Ghost' is up to."

He sighed before answering her. "It's cocaine. We don't sell it; we just stole it and I am dropping it somewhere so that it doesn't get out on my streets."

She raised an eyebrow. "Your streets? Damn Huey, cocky much." She snorted. She didn't even pay attention to what was in the bag, much to Huey's surprise.

She just got a smirk as a reply.

* * *

Not far, Royalty was enjoying her Oreo milkshake as she strolled her way outside the mall.

"You enjoying that shit ain't you." Marcus said next to her.

Royalty jumped as she heard talking. She was confused about what he was talking about but then looked down to the item in her hand.

"Oh yeah. It's my favourite flavour." She laughed lightly.

They walked the rest of the way in silence. It wasn't that he was a bad guy. He was amazing but for some reason she just couldn't connect with him like she expected herself to.

"Where to now?" She asked him.

"Well I was thinking-"

"Ay yo Royalty! You don't see a nigga here!" She heard her name being called and turned to see Riley sitting on a bench with four other men.

"Riley? What are you doing here?" She asked, instantly forgetting who she was with.

"Girl this just one of my spots. Whatchu doing here?" He looked her up and down and still thought she was fine in such a simple outfit.

"Uhh-"

"She with me cuz." Marcus spoke up reminding Royalty that she was out with someone.

Riley looked at the man standing behind her and his eyebrows screwed together. "And who the fuck is you?"

"Riley." Royalty gave him a look that said 'don't start some shit'.

"Marcus nigga."

"Ok Marcus nigga. What you doing with my girl here?" Riley stepped up to him completely ignoring her now.

"Last I heard, she don't have no man so I don't know what you're talking about." Marcus shrugged and stepped up to Riley. Instantly, his people jumped up too.

Riley held his hand to tell them to relax which they listened to. "Surprise you don't know me. Thought she might have slipped up and moaned my name instead." Riley smirked as he saw that he hit a nerve.

Royalty knew it was time to jump in. "Marcus. I will meet you at the car." He looked at her as if she was crazy. "Trust me. Just go."

Marcus slowly backed away while nodding his head. "Ite." He said quietly before turning and walking to his car.

Royalty turned back to Riley and punched him in the arm making him flinch in contact.

"What is wrong with you? Telling niggas we fucked."

"Fucking. Present tense nigga."

Royalty squinted up her eyes and held out her hands as if she was going to strangle him. "Ugh. You're so annoying. I will see you later boy."

"Boy? I am a grown ass man and I will see that fine ass of yours tonight." Riley smirked as he looked Royalty up and down seductively. Royalty felt tingles in her stomach but ignored it. Instead she turned around and stomped away from him.

"Damn Reezy! You fucked that? You one lucky motherfucker." One of the guys said behind him as he didn't turn his eyes away from her shrinking silhouette.

"Trust me nigga. I know." Riley smirked but remembered what they were doing there. "Hold up. You all just going to sit there like bitches in my business, go sell some shit man!" He lectured them. They all began to curse Riley but listened to what he said and got up.

Riley smiled to himself as he thought about how he was going to make sure Marcus didn't look her way again. Just give him a minute.

* * *

Back with Huey and Jazmine, the two sat in a comfortable silence. Jazmine was thinking of how Huey might have gotten so many bags of drugs. Where was it going to go after he dropped it? Who were they giving it to? So many questions and hopefully it would be answered soon.

"I'm here. You can come now." Huey had stopped across the street from a police station, much to the Jazmine's surprise. This is the last place she expected Huey to be.

"Why are we here?" She asked nervously.

"Drop off." He simply replied.

A small man jogged across the street towards the car. Jazmine knew he was a police officer by the shiny badge on his hip, as well as the gun. He smiled and held his arms out in greeting.

"Well if it isn't my nigga Ghost. It's been a minute since I have seen you." They heard him say since the window was done.

"Yeah man. I got the shit in the back." Huey told him. "Wait here." He told Jazmine and she nodded in response.

Huey walked to the back of his shiny, black Mercedes and opened the trunk.

"Damn nigga. Where the fuck you get all this product from?" The officer asked Huey.

"Dre, you know the deal. I give, you don't ask. Just take the shit, I got places to be." Huey rolled his eyes making Jazmine giggle as she watched the interaction through the rear-view mirror.

"Yeah yeah I know. I see you got a pretty lady in the front. Hey pretty lady! I hope Huey is treating you right!" He directed to her. She let out another giggle before turning around to face him.

"Don't worry! He is." The two exchanged a quick smile before Huey abruptly closed the trunk.

"Later Dre." Huey said his goodbyes before jumping in the car and driving away, leaving the man with heavy bags to carry to where ever he was going next.

"Huey." Jazmine said sternly. She crossed her arms across her chest. She took a quick look outside and saw they were coming up to his house.

"What?" He raised an eyebrow at her looking sternly at him.

"You just drove off so rudely. He was just trying to help you."

"And he did. We didn't need to stay any longer and you're with me, I didn't want to keep you there any longer than we needed to." Huey explained to her.

"Well what we gonna do at your place?" She asked.

Huey smirked at her. "I may have an idea..."

* * *

40 minutes later

"I... am so fucking high..."

The two were currently lying on the floor, staring up at the ceiling. Huey had gotten some weed from Caesar but this time, he gave Huey something extra to make sure he gets high which worked perfectly. They both were as high as Snoop and didn't know how long it would take them to come back down. They sat there for a good 20 minutes in silences, just looking up.

"Bro... what the fuck did Michael give me?" Huey questioned to no one in particular.

Jazmine slowly turned her head to Huey. "What? Since when did he have two names?"

"Jazmine, you knew that from when we introduced each other in the office."

Realisation dawned on her. "Ooohh yeaaaaahh." She began to giggle to herself. "You got food?"

"Maybe..." He replied slowly.

"Ok..." Jazmine replied but she still never made no move to get it.

"Are you not going to raid my kitchen?" He asked her.

"Oh yeah..." She giggled once again. She was a happy high, Huey was a calm high but now, she got the munchies. Using Huey's body as support, she slowly raised herself up to walk into his small kitchen to look for his snacks.

"Damn nigga you barley have shit in here. Don't you motherfucking eat? Damn bitch!" Yeah, she becomes a potty mouth too. "Hmm Sour Patch Kids..." She hummed before grabbing the unopened packet.

"Ha, you sound like Homer." Huey smirked.

"Shut up." She kicked him lightly before joining him back on the floor.

"If you lie down, you might choke."

"Damn nigga, you're ruining my high." Jazmine kicked him again.

"I have never heard you say nigga and that is very weird."

"I know, I get like that sometimes. Don't really like to use it. Anyway, shut up and eat this." Jazmine reached over and forced four into his mouth much to his shock. "Take that."

"You're crazy." He mumbled as he began to chew the contents in his mouth.

"I thought you liked crazy?"

"I don't remember saying that."

"Well I'm saying it now." Jazmine rolled over and threw her leg across his waist. "Grand opening today. You excited?" He shrugged in response. "Well I am. I know you're going to love what I got going on." She smirked up at him. Huey closed his eyes but Jazmine was not going to let him fall asleep on her. "You are not falling asleep on me." She whispered.

Jazmine boldly moved to straddle Huey which made his eyes instantly pop open in shock.

"Jazmine..." He groaned as she slowly rocked her hips against his.

"I see I got your attention now..." She smirked. She always knew how to get male attention when she wanted to.

Huey smirked too. "From the moment I've met you, you have always had it."

He moved his hands so that it rested on her thighs on either side of him.

"To believe that just over a week ago, I didn't even know you. Now, I am here on your lap and I am loving every second of it."

"So, are you just going to sit there or are you going to do something while you're up there."

Jazmine giggled but shook her head. "I'm gonna beat you up one day." She leaned forward and connected her lips to Huey's. They were both still high but all the feelings now were just what they would do if they weren't.

Huey decided to sit up so Jazmine didn't have to strain his neck but not once did their lips pull apart. The kiss was fiery and addictive. Jazmine moved her arms around his neck and pulled him in even closer.

"You so damn fine." Huey mumbled. Jazmine (still on her high) found it hilarious for some reason and began to giggle uncontrollably. Huey rolled his eyes at her giggling as they now were no longer locking lips.

"I'm sorry. I don't know why I started laughing." She leaned her head back in laughter.

"Then stop laughing and kiss me."

The two smirked at each other once again before continuing to make out. Huey didn't find his position on the floor comfortable so he lift himself and Jazmine up from the floor.

"Ah! Huey!" Jazmine broke away in surprise as he managed to stand while holding her.

As he rested on his feet, the lips connected again and they continued their little make out.

* * *

**Well, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Next chapter might take a min but we getting there. I was going to put the next chapter in this one but I like how I ended it. Anyway I am not gonna say too much coz I am tired asf buttt thank you all reviews, keep it coming. I love that you love. Leave some more lool.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	21. Chapter 21: The Blue Moon

Huey and Jazmine walked into the club and she was very shocked at what she saw. The stage floor was a shiny white colour with a pole in the middle but at the back there was 4 more poles evenly spread out. The main colours were black, blue and white and everything looked amazing. New furniture, new lights, new DJ booth, everything. Nothing looked the same. Huey said he was going to change everything but Jazmine didn't believe he meant everything and let's not forget he did it in less than a week. This man really is magic.

"Do you like it?" She heard next to her. She turned to face him, her eyes and mouth still wide.

"Huey... you did amazing! These colours are everything! I can't believe you managed to do all this." Jazmine praised.

Huey didn't know how to take such high praise from someone other than his family so this felt weird.

"Thanks."

Jazmine couldn't stop smiling. She knew with this new stage, her routine would look even better and more seats, meant more customers and more customers, means more money. With Huey's influence, tonight and nights to come would be packed out.

"Jazzy! You finally made it." The two turned when they heard the sound of Cindy's voice coming from the dressing room. All she had on was a white robe with 'Sapphire' written in blue on the side which made Jazmine's eyebrow raise.

"Yeah I did. I'm still a bit buzzed but I'm good." Her smiled turned into a questioning look as she pointed up and down to the new robe. "Since when did you get this?"

"Since today! Your little boyfriend here got this for us four. It all has our name in the colours." Cindy smiled excitedly which Jazmine now matched.

"Huey, you really did this?" Jazmine was now practically bouncing up and down in excitement.

Huey felt weird again. Seeing her so happy made his stomach feel odd and he all of a sudden got nervous.

"Uhh, it was Caesar's idea actually. He brought them for you four." He answered as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Jazmine thought Huey looking nervous was very adorable. It made her want to make him more nervous because his face was looking pinchable.

"Aww well we would have to thank him when he comes but for now." Jazmine went on her tip toes and planted a sweet soft kiss on his cheek making his body increase in temperate and Cindy's mouth to drop. "Thank you. For everything you have done for me. And my girls. Seriously." She sent him a sincere smile which he replied with a nod before following Cindy into the changing room to get ready for the opening night.

"I guess that's the girl everyone has been talking about." Huey heard another voice behind him and was shocked when he saw five people standing behind him.

"What are you doing here?" Huey asked as he went over to greet them.

"Damn we can't see our family?"

Now you're probably wondering who had just entered. Meet Anthony, Demetrius, Dante, Jaliyah, and Monique Freeman. These were Huey and Riley's cousins. Now, it might get a bit complicated so let's break it down.

Robert Freeman had three sons. Christian, Dominic and Mario Freeman. Christian had Huey and Riley. Dominic was the middle child with 25-year-old twins Demetrius and Dante and a 22-year-old daughter, Jaliyah. Mario was the youngest with a 26-year-old son and 19-year-old daughter, Anthony and Monique.

Anthony was the oldest cousin and was a coach in the local high school where they went to and has a wife and 2 daughters. Sports was his calling so everyone made sure he stayed away from the gang lifestyle. He inherited the Freeman maroon eyes and had a fade.

Demetrius and Dante are identical twins who looked just like Riley, expect one had waves and the other had cornrows but with the sides shaved. Dante had a daughter and were both twins are involved in the gang but just went away on holiday which is why they haven't been around. Then there was their sister, Jaliyah, who had dark brown eyes with her hair now, dark blue and curly. She had just graduated from college and is now a surgeon.

Then the youngest cousin, Monique Smith-Freeman got adopted by Mario when she was six. Her mother abandoned her and then her father died, Mario was close to her father so decided to officially adopt her. She had dark skin with a red undertone, large dark curls and dark eyes. She was half black and half Latina so Huey became her tutor in teaching her how to speak Spanish to keep in touch with her Colombian heritage ever since she joined the family despite it being her mother side she got it from. Mario made sure she didn't lose her culture. She was now in college on a full scholarship in athletics.

"I never said that, I just meant that you lot are busy with school, work and on a holiday." Huey explained.

"Well one it's a weekend. Two, we just came back today and three, we wouldn't miss a grand opening of your brand-new club." Dante answered.

"I still can't believe my baby cuz brought an actual strip club which by the way, looks fucking amazing." Anthony chuckled as he looked around the room.

"What can I say, I make good investments." Huey smirked.

"Good indeed..." Demetrius trailed off as Cotton walked past them to make her way to the back.

Monique now spoke up excitedly. "Pero, let's not forget that chica muy sexy."

"Yeah Caesar was telling us about you and some girls. I hope you know what you doing." Jaliyah crossed her arms as she looked at him.

"Why has everyone gotten onto me for this one place?"

"Because, this is a Riley thing. Not a Huey thing." Anthony smirked.

"I don't know how to feel about it."

Their conversation was cut short when Jazmine ran back out in only a pink lace underwear set, which you could see her nipple piercings, and her new robe.

"Hey Huey, um I didn't know you have company. Don't worry, I'll come back later." She went to turn back but was stopped before she could.

Dante was the first to jump in. "No baby, you're just fine. Very fine." He licked his lips as he looked her up and down to take in her whole body which got him slapped by his sister. He was lucky that she beat him first before Huey could reach him.

"Don't mind him. I'm Jaliyah, he's Dante. That's Demetrius, Anthony and Monique. We're Riley and Huey's cousins."

"Nice to meet you guys." She beamed and waved at them. "So, are you guys staying for the show?"

"It's been the talk of the neighbourhood so of course we had to come down and to support family. Despite my wife not being too happy with it." Anthony laughed.

"Well I guess we have to baby sit each other." Monique faked frowned as she patted him on the back. Since she was 19, she shouldn't even be there but because her cousin owned it, she was allowed in, same goes for Empire.

"Don't worry, I will tell my girls to stay clear of you." Jazmine smiled.

From the same place Jazmine came out, Ming, Cindy and Royalty ran out but were unaware of the new people in the room, wearing the same thing as Jazmine.

"I'm going to fuck this pole up real good. Ayyyyeee!" Royalty cheered as she did a quick little spin around the pole.

"Uhh Roy Roy... there's people here." Cindy pointed over to where the group were standing.

"Well they're going to see it in a few hours." She shrugged.

"How does this nigga know all these fine ass girls? I go away for a month and all this shit happens." Demetrius moaned.

"You haven't missed much but you still need to catch up with a few things." Huey told him seriously. They nodded knowing they would have a talk later.

By now the three girls had joined the group of people and they all began to introduce each other.

"How long have you been dancing?" Monique asked them.

"A few years." Ming answered.

Dante was the next to speak up with a cheesy grin on his face. "You girls must be special to have these boys whipped and what I was told doesn't do justice on how you actually look."

Jazmine gave him a smile back despite Huey's eye roll. "Thank you. Now would you like-"

"Girls! We need your help!" They turned to see the new twin dancers coming their way.

"What's wrong?"

"Daisy is having a panic attack and Melody's bra broke." Charm told her.

Jazmine sighed. "I guess our work just started. We will see you guys later. Come on girls, let's go."

They all said goodbye to the girls before watching them disappear into the back.

"I need a drink." Anthony commented as he ran a hand over his face.

"Help yourself to whatever you want." Huey told them.

"Trust me. I was."

They all walked over to the bar to get themselves drinks. The cousins began to talk and laugh between themselves while Huey sat off on his own until the oldest came over to talk to him.

"So, how's you and Miss green eyes?"

"What?"

Anthony smirked. "You know what I'm talking about. I see the way you look at her and how she looks at you. It's how my wife and I looked at each other. Remember, we're high school sweet hearts."

Huey shook his head. "I don't see it."

"Huey. Come on now, stop playing. What Caesar told me was that you took her out to dinner which already says something. What else have you done?" He asked his cousin.

'I really am going to hurt Caesar.' Huey thought. Caesar was just telling everyone everything.

He sighed. "I was supposed to take her out today too but I needed to do the drop off. She insisted to come with me. Then we got high and she kissed me..."

Anthony looked at him shocked. "Huey what the fuck? You took her on a ride along?"

"I know I know. I didn't want to but for some reason I let her convince me to bring her with me."

He sighed. "You really like this girl huh? I never thought I would see this day. I, my friend, am shocked."

Huey downed the rest of his drink as he listened to his older cousin. Their family was close in age so they all grew up together but Anthony and Huey were the closest. Riley was closer to the twins and the two girls were close to each other. Anthony knew Huey more than anyone else so he could easily see through his bullshit of his denial.

Hearing his cousin say this made him realise that maybe everyone was right. I mean, within the past few days Jazmine was able to do things he wouldn't let anyone else get close enough to do. Huey couldn't believe how much Jazmine had changed him.

"I am too. Tony... I need help man. I can't bring them into this life and Riley is getting strung too. Caesar is on his way and I'm pretty sure Hiro has already asked her out."

Anthony sighed at his younger cousins. "Listen. As long as you protect them, then you're fine. Our dads managed to protect our mothers for as long as they have known each other. I know you can do it too. You could pass the role onto Riley..." He trailed off as he saw the look Huey gave him. "Yeah, you're right, bad idea. Then there's always one of the twins. Either way, sort your shit out but make sure you protect them girls along the way." Anthony patted him on the back before walking back to the other family members.

Huey knew his cousin was right. It was what Caesar had been saying from the beginning. If he was ever going to be with Jazmine, he had to make sure she stayed safe. His mother and father have been together for years and he always made sure she stayed safe. He was just going to have to do the same thing.

"Oh shit! What's this? A family reunion. What up fam!" Huey was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard Riley's excited voice. He saw him, Hiro and Caesar stroll into the club but who he didn't expect to see was Raven too.

"Raven? Girl it's been a minute!" Jaliyah pulled her into a hug which she happily accepted.

"Damn, the surgeon came out to play I see. Came to see you're cousins crazy investment?"

"Yeah. Crazy indeed..." She mumbled as she took a sip of her drink.

"Sup Reezy, long time man." Dante greeted back.

"I know man. Shit been crazy."

Raven was going to go over to talk to Huey but Riley beat her to it as he walked over to his brother once everyone else jumped back into their own conversations. "Ay Huey... you seen Royalty?"

Huey looked at him strangely, wondering why he would ask that question.

"She's in the back. Why?"

"Nothing." With that Riley walked away in thought. She had been ignoring his calls and text since he saw her outside the mall and he was not liking it. He didn't even do anything wrong, he simply just said what was on his mind and no nigga named Marcus was going to get in his way. He was determined to talk to her.

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen. Once again, I would like to say welcome, to the grand reopening of The Blue Moon!" The DJ announced on the microphone causing cheers to roar around the room.

The most anticipated club in Chicago had finally opened back up and everyone was excited to be there. They had all their money in their hands ready to throw at the girls who were being introduced onto the stage.

"Now, you have seen the original girls and you have seen the new girls but these next set of girls... you wouldn't believe what your eyes have been blessed with." Everyone cheered again. "These next four lovely girls go by the group name of Gems: Ruby, Sapphire, Diamond and Emerald!" More louder cheers. "They have put together a special performance for you tonight and trust me, you will enjoy it. First up, we got our Asian with the moves. Give a warm welcome to Rubbyyy!"

As her name was called, people were cheering and as she stepped out, it caused Hiro's mouth to drop open. Ginuwine – Pony began to play as she strolled out in a large fur coat and heels but what was a shock was her hair. It was dirty blonde and in a short, curly bob. Hiro couldn't believe his eyes. She looked amazing. Half way through the first verse, she threw the coat off her and disposed of it at the back of the stage.

She had on black, fishnet tights with a red leotard that exposed her back and red glitter all over her body. As the hook kicked in, she walked in front of the stage and dipped down low, looking seductively in the customers faces, who then began to throw money at her feet. She pretended to 'ride a pony' in front of the stage which shocked Hiro at how good she could move her hips. Hiro was in awe but he was too far to throw any money to her. The song went on and so did her routine. She may not have much but she was making it all work which was enough to send people going wild. He even saw the dragon tattoo that went from the shoulder to the bottom of her spine which he wanted to get a close up of to see if it matched his own on his chest.

The song ended and everyone stood up and cheered, throwing their last few dollars to her. She collected some and then made her way off the stage but not without blowing kisses to the crowd.

"Give it up for Ruby!" The DJ shouted on the mic. "Next up, the sexy snow bunny that could easily beat you in a game of basketball, Sapphire!"

Now, another shock for the night. Sapphire now had black curly hair that reached her shoulder and made her striking blue eyes pop even more. She also stepped out in a large fur coat but once that fell, everyone got to see her custom very cropped, jersey that was blue and her name in white with the number 1 on it, with some blue shorts. Like Ruby, she had glitter on her body but in blue as well as her tattoos pocking out. Christina Aguilera – Dirty began to play and Sapphire exploded into a fire routine. Caesar began to shout and was excited since he has never seen her move like this. The wig was glued on good by how hard she was swinging it around in circles as she was on the floor in front of the stage. Caesar, like Hiro, hasn't seen her express herself like this since she is more of a waitress than dancer. Either way, Caesar was enjoying the show.

Sapphire made sure that she was dancing to the song's lyrics, it talked about getting dirty so she made sure her moves were showcasing how dirty she could be even if it was simply her rubbing her hands over her toned body.

"Just amazing! Sapphire people!" The crowd cheered as she collected her things and walked off the stage. "Now this next girl is a wild one. Coming from one of the island's, give it up for Diamond!"

Diamond came out with a new look too. Her hair was platinum blonde and reach down to her bum and yes, you guessed it, a big fur coat. The audience was not tired of these reveals. A song from her country called No Underwear by Dexta Daps began to play. Not many people knew of the song but they didn't prepare themselves for how explicit it was. From when he began to sing, she turned so her back was facing everyone and slowly let the coat fall off her body which caused the room to go crazy and begin to throw money.

She had on white, see-through, thigh high socks and a white, lace thong and bra set as well as silver glitter. You could see her hip to thigh, tattoo. She was whining* slow to the song, making sure everyone was getting every angle of her waist. She would run her hand over her body to emphasis her figure and cheekily stuck out her tongue. Out of the four, she could do more pole work so she was doing all different tricks. She was all over it, spinning slowly, doing splits in the air. People were drooling over her, including Riley. He was watching her intensely and was glad he had his chance with her. By the small little glances around the room, he knew that some of these people would try and have their way with her and he knew that she wouldn't let them get close to her. Riley counted himself lucky and he was not going to let her go anytime soon.

The song came to an end and Diamond made her way off the stage as she blew a kiss to the crowd in front of her as they flooded the stage she was just on with money and she collected some on her way out.

"Thank you for the truly sexy performance Diamond. I miss you girl. Up next, the last Gem to come out on stage. She goes by the name of Emerald and you will see why soon. Trust me, this girl can dance." The DJ announced and it was now for the fourth member to come out on stage.

Now Emerald's routine showed off her years of dance. She stepped onto the stage as Chris Brown – Lurkin played in the back. Her hair was the same length as Diamond's except it was dark brown and water waves. The dark hair brought out her bright eyes which scanned the room for paying customers. She spun in a circle and threw the large coat off her body causing the room to roar in excitement as they laid eyes on her green, fishnet bodysuit that was in a thong and green glitter, allowing some of her tattoos to show. Taking advantage of her hair glued on tight, she threw her head around to give them a view of her full body.

By the way she moved, you could tell she had a history of dancing as it was very thought out and planned. Huey watched her drop into splits from coming down off the pole and felt annoyed that he couldn't take her right here, right now. She was in her element on the stage as her spot light shone on her. He managed to make eye contact with her and she sent an alluring wink his way and a smirk along with it. Huey was hypnotized by her movements, he drowned out everything else around him and concentrated on her and only her. Even Raven had to admit that the girl had some serious skills. Little did he know, there was a light skin man with his own history with the dancer who was looking at her with the same admiration the leader was giving her. Some customers thought her wink and smirk was for them so they got happy and jumped up to throw money onto the stage.

"Now that's what I am fucking talking about. Give it up for Emerald!" The DJ shouted once her song ended.

Emerald strutted to the front of the stage as the rest of the Gems joined her on stage. Everyone stood up and were screaming in delight as all four girls stood together on stage, giving everyone one last look at them on stage. They were proud of themselves. They have never felt so alive in a very long time and the rush they were feeling was unmatched.

"Tell me these girls aren't fire, I mean did you see how they moved just now? These were the best 30 minutes of your life so I hoped you soaked it real good but you can always requires them for a little private session. Trust me, it would be worth the money." The room began to laugh as the girls made their final exit off the stage. "Thank you all for coming but I just want you to know that the night has just started. So, get some drinks, get some girls and party motherfuckeeerrrsss!" The DJ screamed into the microphone and everyone followed him. Everyone was buzzing from the performances and some had to go over to the ATMs to make sure they still had enough money.

* * *

"Ayyyyyy!"

Backstage, the girls had popped a few champagne bottles in celebration of the grand reopening. The performances had gone perfectly and even better than what they imagined.

"Look at all this money! You guys really do this all the time?" Aurora held her money to her chest.

"Yes! It wasn't so bad was it? Now even if you don't want to be on stage, you can be on the floor, private rooms, waitress or bartender. You choose what you want to be baby girl. Feel good in your skin." Emerald smiled sweetly at her. The new dancer nodded before walking over to talk to the other new dancers.

"We. Did. That!" Diamond jumped up and down before pulling her girls into a tight hug which they happily accepted.

"Ruby and I haven't been on stage in at least 2 years and I have never felt so alive." Sapphire grinned.

"So does that mean you're joining us on stage?"

"No." They both said. After that they all burst into laughter.

Emerald decided to address the room.

"Alright ladies. The night is still young, we still got money to get so let's get it!" After that, they all began to change into different clothes for the rest of the night.

"Emerald, Diamond. You have a request for room 3." Rose came to tell them before running off somewhere else.

"I wonder who we got today." Diamond smirked as she applied red lips stick that went with her outfit.

"Someone with deep pockets hopefully." Emerald replied as she began buckling up her heels to get ready to leave.

Once ready, they got to room 3 and stood outside.

Emerald took a deep breath and turned to her partner in crime.

"You ready?"

Diamond smirked. "I stay ready baby."

They threw open the door and stepped into a room full of eight men.

"Hey boys- fuck..." Emerald trailed off.

Jayden. Again. Here. At her job.

"Hey JD." He smirked at her. Her revealing outfit was sending him crazy and he couldn't wait to get his true birthday treat.

"Fuck me..." Emerald mumbled. Diamond saw her uneasy look and stepped in.

"Hey, as you know, I'm Diamond and this is Emerald. It seems as if my girl is unable to occupy your time so we'll get you some other girls and you can get some of your money back."

"No no wait. Please. Stay." Jayden jumped up and reach out for Emerald who was ready to run out which caused his boys to look at him strangely. He even pulled out some money to try and convince her even more.

Emerald sighed and looked at Diamond who just shrugged, showing it was up to her to decide.

"Fine..." She turned back around and threw a painful smile on her face. "Let's get the party started!"

"Now, birthday boy. Why don't you sit right here and get comfortable." Diamond smirked as she pushed him down back into his seat. His friends began to get excited but Jayden just wanted to see Emerald but knew she was nervous.

Emerald took a deep breath but got back into her stripper persona. She had a job to do and money to make.

"Let's have a little fun." She said seductively as she strolled over to play some music. As the music began to play, she opened the door and about eight girls pilled in. Emerald was glad they had this surprise because it meant she could spend less time with Jayden.

"JD!"

Or so she thought.

She walked over to him and roughly sat on his lap, making him gulp in surprise.

"Please. Call me Emerald, I insist." Her tone of voice was telling him that he had no choice but to call her that which he had to respect.

As she began to give him a lap dance, as it was her job, she felt his breath on the skin of her neck causing a shiver to go down her spine.

"La mia bella ragazza." He whispered in Italian.

Emerald's breath got caught in her throat as she got flash backs to 10 years ago to when he began to say it to her.

'My beautiful girl', he said to her. She would swoon every time he would speak his first language to her but now, it didn't have the same pantie dropping effect.

"I think I should go and get a bottle." Emerald tried to announce but Jayden pulled her back.

"J- I mean, Emerald. Please just stay a little longer." He pleaded with her.

She sighed but nodded which made a smile grow on his face. He stood up and brought her into the corner of the room. Diamond saw this but let it happen, knowing she couldn't do anything and continued her lap dance.

"I loved your performance. Reminded me of your cheerleading days, well, sort of. You were crazy good up there, I mean, crazy good. The way you danced on that pole and your hair. Really brings out the colour of your eyes miss Emerald."

"Thank you. Years of practice I guess." She shrugged as she handed him a drink.

"So, what up with you and this Huey guy?" Hearing this question caused her eye to grow in size.

"Um. Uh." She stuttered. She took a deep breath before answering the best she could. "I guess you could say we're seeing each other. We haven't put a label on anything."

"Good good... so does that mean I still have a chance?"

"Jayden-"

"Listen. I know it's a bit much but I have to leave after this weekend, back to Woodcrest, to pack up my things."

"Why you packing up your things?" Emerald questioned.

"I'm moving here of course! I got a job at a local school as a teacher so I am moving in two months." He grinned.

Emerald didn't know how to feel. She didn't expect this to happen on a day she was just meant to have pure fun and celebration.

"Wow, that's great. I am so happy for you." She tried her best to smile brightly. "You will do an amazing job with these kids. You always have hope and I know that you will give that to the children too. Been the same determined person since high school days." She told him sincerely.

"Yeah, I can't wait." He sighed as he realised their time together was up. "Look, if when I come back, you and Huey are no more, I want to take you out on a date. Like old times but much better since I have more money now." He laughed which even made her let out a soft giggle which he missed. "If you're official, I will back off. If anything, we could try and be friends."

Emerald thought about it for a second but knew this was the best option she was going to get.

"Ok. Fine. We will see what happens then." She agreed.

Diamond stood up and motioned for the girls to follow too.

"We had fun but our time is up. We will see you outside. Byyyyyeeee." Diamond waved seductively which the other girls followed suit. They began to walk out and Emerald stood in front of Jayden who stood up too.

"I will see you then." He pulled her into a tight hug that he wished would last longer as his hands rested on her soft, warm skin.

"Bye Jayden."

"Bye JD."

With that, she walked out, showcasing all her good genes with her.

Jayden took a shot once the door closed and his friends turned to him.

"Bro, why you so strung on that Emerald girl? She's a stripper man! You know how bad it is to be seen with one of them with your job?" One of his friends said.

"She's not just any stripper. You know the girl I was telling you about from high school."

"Your ex-girlfriend Jazmine?" His other one joined in.

"Yeah, that one. That's her. That's Jazmine, my Jazmine." He told them.

"Damn. You tapped that?"

Jayden smirked. "Of course I did. I was her first and had that shit for nearly two years. She got finer over time that's for sure."

"So you really trying to tap that again?" His friend asked as they walked back into the main room. Jayden searched the room and laid eyes on where Jazmine AKA Emerald, was giving another customer a lap dance.

Jayden smirked. "I will do more than just tap that."

* * *

The night went on. More drinks went around, more lap dances were given, more money was thrown. It was a successful night for the dancers of The Blue Moon. Huey didn't get to steal his favourite dancer for some privacy and decided to let her work tonight and he would catch up with her later but at least he was entertained by his family. They didn't care much about the dancers and spent most of their time drinking and talking. The Freeman's were very interesting people.

"Remember when Grandad whooped you threes ass because you drank his favourite juice." Jaliyah did a full belly laughed, holding onto her stomach as she remembered that day when they all stayed at their grandfather's house. Dante, Demetrius and Riley were always getting beating from him for days.

"Yo that shit was so funny." Monique joined in.

"Man that shit wasn't funny." Riley complained.

"Yeah. Imagine having to explain to school why you got a big ass coco on your head because you stole some juice. It's not like they were going to call CPS on his ass." Dante moaned as he took a sip of his drink.

"They should have. That shit hurt like a motherfucker." Demetrius jumped in.

"He only beat you that hard because he got rejected by that strip... holy shit..." Everyone saw Anthony's eyes go wide as he stared across the room.

"What?" They all questioned until they looked in his line of sight.

"Oh shit. Get it Granddad!" Monique shouted.

Across the room, their grandfather was getting a lap dance by two girls. Robert Freeman was having the time of his life with the two girls who Huey recognised one as Bunny which caused him to roll his eyes.

"Who told this man to come here?" Caesar asked shocked.

"I have no idea but let's just hope his heart doesn't give way because tonight is waaayy too good of a night to be running to the hospital." Jaliyah laughed causing them all to laugh as they continued to watch his antics. It was normal behaviour for them to see but still hilarious to see.

The elder Freeman threw some money over the girls who laughed in excitement.

"McBitches is back bitches!"

* * *

**I hope you liked the performances, the little grandad part and the family members. Hopefully it's not too confusing.**

***Whining is not twerking. It's different things. Whining is all about your waist which everyone from the Caribbean does.**

**Thank you for all the reviews and I can't wait for what you think about this chapter.**

**Guest: Yeah, I wanted him to be a gangster but still have some of 'him' still there.**

**Beau: I'm sorry if the chapters felt too short for you, I am trying to make it longer but I keep finding decent places to end it. I am trying to make them longer as time goes on. And you will just have to wait and see how this journey goes lool.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	22. Chapter 22: Day Off

**I don't usually do a/n at the beginning but just wanted to let you all know there's going to be some sexual interactions in this chapter. Issa M rated story so yeah, to be expected. Still, warning I guess.**

* * *

Two weeks had past and the streets were surprisingly quiet. There was no action from the Russians or from The Panthers. Everything was quiet which was what scared Huey. He didn't know what the Russians were planning but knew he couldn't let his guard down; it was only a matter of time that they strike back.

Other than that, everything was going well. His clubs were doing amazing. Once people heard how jaw dropping the opening night was, news spread like wildfire and more and more people came. The girls were ecstatic, they were seeing more money than they usually would so every night they didn't pull out any half-hearted act, they went full on. Huey got lots of praise for that.

Speaking on the girls, Hiro and Ming made it official the day after the grand reopening, Cindy is finally giving Caesar a chance to win her over and Royalty continued to ignore Riley but he still never gave up. A part of her didn't want him to either, she was enjoying the change no matter how selfish she knew it was. Huey and Jazmine were more complicated. Huey was busy all the time so they only saw each other a few times but he made time to talk to her. She knew it must be hard to run a whole gang and she was grateful for him trying to find time just to talk to her, not many guys were like that. She had come to terms that Huey could be very one tone but a person like Jazmine, she didn't care, she managed to befriend a drug dealer, she could get through to anyone. Huey found it scary how close she managed to get to him but it also didn't find mind it. It shocked him to even admit that in his head.

* * *

Hiro, Ming, Caesar and Cindy had just come out of the movies and were now on their way to get some food.

"You know, I see her point. We should start bringing in big ballers to the club." Cindy nodded as she took the last sip of her drink before throwing it in the bin.

"Baby, I'm a big baller. You want a house; I can get that. A car, I can get that. New shoes, done. I got you girl." Caesar flung his arm around her and pulled her closer.

"So you wanted us to drug you and take all your money?" Ming exaggerated herself imagining how they would do so.

"No. Don't listen to him. You got lucky that we were the ones Riley dragged out to the club. You still would have been managed by that dickhead. By the way he was running it, it wouldn't have taken long before that shit failed." Hiro squeezed Ming's hand as they walked down the street.

"Damn. You know how hard it is to get a job with stripper on your resume." Cindy shook her head. "Either way, I hate to say it but your boss did good."

"For real. I would have never met my future wife." Caesar smirked at everyone's shocked face but he continued. "Yes I can imagine it now. You said your favourite season is winter so we will have a winter wonderland wedding even though you have never heard of a nigga having one. We will have two kids. A son named Aiden and a daughter named Ashley. You can pick the middle names. Our kids will then grow up with Huey, Riley and Hiro's kids and be the baddest kids on the block. They will be causing trouble and fucking anyone who tries them. Then we would live happily ever after."

By the end of Caesar's made story, everyone had stopped to look at him. They truly thought he was insane. What made it all even scarier was that he sounded 100% serious about what he was saying. Caesar smiled nonchalantly at them as if he did nothing wrong.

"What?"

"You one crazy motherfucker you know that." Ming pointed at him.

"Why did you three leave me with the psycho one?" Cindy pouted.

"Because you like them crazy and you crazy too." Ming answered her.

Cindy's mouth hung open in protest but couldn't help but nod in agreement.

"You all just going to talk about me like I'm not here?" Caesar questioned as they reached their cars.

They all looked at each other before struggling.

"Yeah."

"Pretty much."

"Damn straight."

"Some friends you are." He mumbled. With that, they all jumped in the car to enjoy the rest of their day enjoying each other's company.

* * *

"Rileeeyyyy! Motherfucker open the door! I know your fucking ass is in there you piece of shit! Open the door you pussyhol!" She screamed and slammed her fist against his front door.

Now you're probably wondering how did she get upstairs if she's banging on the door. Well, that answer is Huey. She dialled his house so she could pop up on Riley by surprise.

As soon as Riley open the door just a tiny bit, she burst through nearly knocking him over.

"Damn, what a nigga do now?"

He should be used to female cussing him out but he never could.

"You know what you did Riley." She furiously crossed her arms under her chest which just gave Riley the perfect view of her cleavage curtesy from her white v neck which she paired it off with a denim skirt and jacket with black vans.

Riley had to stop himself from licking his lips because he knew she was ready to slap him across the face.

"I have done a lot in my life. You have to be more specific." He walked back over to his couch and sat where he was peacefully smoking a blunt. "Why don't you come join me here?" He patted the space next to him and didn't even turn to look at her pissed off face. She was ready to pull her hair out but she spent at least 30 minutes trying to slick down her thick ass hair to be put into a ponytail for her to just mess it up.

"You had niggas roll up on Marcus and don't you lie to me. He told me they said he best stop messing with me or you'll come for him. Who the fuck do you think you are?!"

Riley blew out a puff of smoke and smirked.

"Riley Escobar motherfucking Freeman baby. You know that name means something."

"It means he's a dead man."

Riley slowly stood up and put his blunt back in the ashtray. "I don't understand why you mad."

"I'm mad because you have no right to be saying that shit." She looked deep in to his red eyes and saw that he felt no type of way but the next question shocked her.

"Did you fuck him?" He simply asked.

"What?"

"Did you. Fuck him? I just want to know." He shrugged as if it was the easiest thing to ask.

"No. I didn't. Why you asking me some dumbass questio-" Royalty was cut off by Riley pulling her into a heated kiss. Royalty was about to let a moan lip then she remembered she was mad at him. "Wait, no Riley-"

"You know you want this as much as I want you, stop fighting me." Riley caught her sweet lips again and they began to have a fiery make out session.

He slowly sat back down and pulled the girl down with him without breaking the kiss. She sat straddling his lap as he rubbed his hands over her ass and even gripped it hard. He pulled her jacket and top off and then his own leaving him shirtless and her in her white bra. Royalty, now feeling sexual frustrated, moved her hand from around his neck to hurriedly pull down the shorts he had on.

"Damn girl." He hissed as she lowered herself onto him. The feeling of her on him was something he knew he will never grow tired of. No girls could compare to her.

Royalty's hands ran over his muscular body in satisfaction but she couldn't stare at it too long because he hit her g spot with so much power she shrieked and eyes crossed in pleasure.

"Fuck you Riley." He heard in between her deep breathing.

He raised an eyebrow and did a quick look up to her face.

"What? What you talking 'bout- hmhmhm!"

Riley's eyes grew wide as she used her hand to cover his mouth.

"Shut the fuck up Reezy. I fucking hate you."

Riley was confused but he was too into the moment to care.

"Oh shit... I'm gonna..." Royalty's breath got caught in her throat as she came to the end of her climax. She rolled her hips as she waited for Riley to finish too which it didn't take him long after her. He would have sworn out loud but his mouth was still covered. "Fuck..." Royalty sighed. She moved off of him and sat on the couch. The only sound in the room was from their breathing.

"You a crazy motherfucker you know that." Riley smirked and turned to face the woman next to him.

"I know and you need to get your ass up." Royalty stood up and put her hands on her hips.

"For what?"

"Ding ding ding, round 2 nigga. Let's go." Royalty pulled off her skirt and threw it in his face. "Remember the song I danced to on the grand reopening? Yeah, I hope you paid attention to the lyrics because that's what I want you to do to me. Come on get your ass up."

Riley only had a second to stare into her greenish brownish eyes because she turned and made her way towards his room. The grin grew on his face knowing he got her hooked even if they don't want to admit it out loud now. He jumped up and ran into his room feeling as he was the luckiest man in the world because that's how he was feeling now.

* * *

"Is it just me or did I hear Royalty screaming down your brother's door?" Jazmine asked. She turned to Huey who was doing push ups as she just watched him. He was planning on doing an all-day work out when Jazmine unexpectedly came over and she wasn't going to stop him from doing what he planned to do. She was most likely going to just sit and watch.

"Well I heard he was doing some stupid shit so I guess it's coming back onto him." He still managed to say even on his 37th push up.

Jazmine laughed. "They some crazy kids but when are we going to have some fun?" Jazmine strolled over and sat on his back causally thinking he would fall to the ground. Instead he continued and still talked to her much to her shock.

"You came here remember. I had no plans for us."

"Why don't we out somewhere?" She shrugged.

"Where?" He was beginning to feel tired but still had 10 more to go so he was going to save his breath the best he could.

"I don't know." She sighed. She was about to say something else but she felt him shift positions meaning he was finished. She stood up and picked up the water bottle for him.

"Thanks." He said before downing the contents in the bottle.

Jazmine looked over his topless body and wanted to run her hands through each muscle there was on his chocolate skin.

"You done staring?"

"I don't know. I'm liking what I'm seeing." She smirked. Jazmine walked closer to him and put her arms around his neck. Huey dropped the bottle and pulled her in closer by her waist.

"You know I am sweaty." He smirked back.

"I know. Now I think you should find a way to make me sweaty."

He raised an eyebrow. "Is that so?"

"Umhum." She mumbled. They lips were seconds away from each other when there was a knock at the door.

"Now who the fuck is that?" Huey thought out loud before pulling away from the beautiful woman that was in his arms.

"Just answer the door." She lightly pushed him towards the door before sitting on his couch. She heard the door open and turned to see Dante (or at least she thought) holding a little girl and a bag in his arms.

"Sup cuz." He greeted.

"Dante. What you doing here?" Huey asked as he let him in. Jazmine did a little happy dance in her head as she got the right twin.

"Hi Hoowee!" The little girl waved. Jazmine heart fluttered as she saw the little girl smile sweetly at Huey and the soft look he gave her.

"Hey Coco. How are you?"

"Goood!" The girl smiled so hard that it reminded Jazmine of herself. She had dark brown skin with brown eyes and her hair was in two. She had a big blue bow in her hair to match her blue dress and had on Timberlands.

"I need a favour. Hey Jazmine, how are you?" Dante just realised the dancer who was smiling at his daughter.

"I'm good. Your daughter is adorable."

"Thanks. She looks like her mother so I ain't too mad about that." He shrugged before turning back to his cousin. "Can you watch Coco for a few hours? I got some things to do and I just need someone to look after her. I would have given her to Riley but he seemed occupied. I needed someone quick." He begged.

Huey sighed, not really wanting to. He wasn't much of a babysitting so he knew his cousin was desperate.

"Come on Huey, I would stay here with you." Jazmine had walked up to the two by now and joined the conversation. "Plus, I wouldn't mind getting to know this little cutie here." She smiled as she heard the child giggle caused by her tickling her stomach.

Dante and Huey shared a knowing look before the older rubbed his hand over his face before answering.

"Fine." Huey sighed.

"Thank you thank you thank you!" Dante smiled as he gave Huey his daughter and dropped the bag on the floor. "Bye baby girl. Be good for Huey and Jazmine ok." He nodded.

"Ok. Bye daddy." She waved at him and he gave her a kiss and was out the door.

"I guess everyone is coming to my house today." Huey rolled his eyes as he brought his cousin over to the living room area to put her down. "Wait here, I'm going to put some clothes on." With that, Huey walked into his room.

Jazmine turned to the little girl next to her. "Hi, my names Jazmine. What's your name?" She knew it but she just wanted to hear the little girl say it for herself.

"Corwee but Coco!" She said excitedly. Jazmine somehow understood what she said. Her name was Cori but people called her Coco which was perfect for her. "You Jaz in?"

"You can call me Jazz or Jazzy. My friends call me that."

"Ok!" She smiled.

"How old are you?" Jazmine asked.

"I'm 3!" She jumped up trying her best to show the numbers on her fingers but it took her a moment to figure it out.

"Wow! You're such a big girl!" Jazmine saw how confidence she was as she beamed with pride.

"Daddy say too!"

Their little moment was cut off by Huey walking back into the room but he brought over the little girl's bag with him to see what his cousin packed.

"I guess we have to find something to do today." Huey sighed as he sent in the chair.

"What do you want to do today Coco?" Jazmine asked the three-year-old who looked to be in deep thought.

"Hmm swim?"

"Your dad never packed your swimming costume." Huey told her causing the little girl to frown but that only lasted a second.

"Oh! Disneeland!"

Huey looked at her in disbelief making Jazmine laugh. "I can't bring you there now. Maybe next time."

"Aw. Maybe park?" She shrugged running out of ideas.

"Yes! Let's go to the park!" Jazmine jumped up in excitement and the little girl matched it.

"Jazmine how do you have the same amount of energy as a three-year-old?" Huey questioned.

"Because I never lose energy." She winked at him. "Let's go girl!" Jazmine scooped up Coco causing her to giggle and skipped towards the door. "Get her bag Huey!"

Huey looked at the two and shook his head. He couldn't believe how easily they got along but he guess that just happens with people like them. They had glowing personalities that just makes people gravity towards them naturally.

"We going to the paark! We going to the paark!" The girls sang as they swung their hands as they made their way down the street to the park.

Huey was strolling behind as he watches the two. Even though Coco was his second cousin, she was more like his niece. She lived with her father since the mother moved away to New York when she was 1 so Dante had her full time. He would bring her around often so Huey got used to her being around and despite the lack of a smile from Huey, Coco loved being around him.

"Jazz look!" Coco pointed as she saw the park in her line of sight.

"Yaay! What should we go on first?"

"Slide!" Coco answered Jazmine. The two took off running leaving Huey behind. Within the short space of meeting each other, they forgot all about Huey and he didn't know if he should be glad or offended. The two clicked automatically making Huey think that she really wants a child. When, he doesn't know but it didn't seem like she wanted to wait long. A thought ran through his mind which scared him. He thought about them having their own children together and how he hoped they looked just like her. He needed to get those thoughts out of his mind.

The girls were already onto the swings. Jazmine was pushing Coco as she screamed to be pushed higher and higher.

"Higher Jazzy! Higher!"

Jazmine couldn't believe how easy it was to bond with this little girl. It had been so long since she had been around children so she was confused on how natural it was coming to her but then again, Coco was an easy child to deal with.

"Jazzy there!" Coco pointed to a sand pit where there were a few other children playing.

Jazmine's outfit maybe simple but she did not want to get sand all over it. She took Coco out of the swing and walked her over to the sandpit but before she could go in Jazmine squatted down to her level.

"I'm going to go sit with Huey over there ok. You carry on having fun." She poked the girl lightly in her side making her giggle.

"Ok Jazzy!" Coco skipped away and went into the sand pit, already making new friends.

Jazmine shook her head and walked over to Huey who was sitting on the bench on his own.

"So was you ever planning on join us or was you just going to sit here?" Jazmine questioned as she crossed her arms.

Huey shrugged. "I'm not a playful person."

"Boo! Look how precious she is with that cute little bow in her hair and that dress! Is it just her and Dante?"

Huey nodded. "Yeah. Been that way since she was one. Despite her very girly girl appearance, she can beat up anyone if she tries hard enough. Been training her since she could walk and she barley has female interactions which is probably why she was so excited to see you."

"Well I am glad I got to meet her. Do any other your other cousins have kids?" She asked.

"Anthony has two daughters."

"Hm no sons in the family yet."

"Yeah. Jaliyah is the only girl in the family biologically so now it seems as if the next generation is going to be all girls." Huey told her.

"I hope I get a little girl like Coco. Smart and fun." Jazmine thought as she watched her playing with the other children.

"She will be, no doubt. Especially with a mother like you it wouldn't be hard for her to inherit your ways." He told her truthfully. Jazmine turned to face him as she looked deep into his maroon eyes.

"You really think that?"

"No doubt."

They held onto each other's gaze for a second until they heard a scream. They turned to see Coco throwing around a little white boy. Once he fell the ground, she began to pound on him as he screamed and shouted for his mother who ran out of nowhere.

"Get off my son!" She shouted. She grabbed Coco's arm and threw her off her son causing the girl to fall on her back.

"Ouch!" She cried as she felt pain growing on her arm.

By now Huey and Jazmine was ready to fight in this park.

"Hey lady!" Jazmine stomped over to the woman checking her son over for any injuries. "How dare you touch a child, are you insane?!" The woman faced Jazmine but before she could say anything, Jazmine pushed her.

By now, other parents had run over to collect their child but stood close enough to hear the commotion.

"Are you ok Coco?" Huey asked his baby cousin who nodded as her eyes watered. She showed Huey the scrape on her arm that was covered in blood and sand and knew it was hurting her but she was trying to be strong. "Why did you hit him?"

"He kick mine and hit me." She frowned as she pointed to her now destroyed sandcastle.

"Your little beast of a child was attacking my son!" She screamed in Jazmine's face.

"Did I just hear you right?" Huey slowly stood up to face the woman who was red in anger.

"Yes! That child is a beast!"

"You best watch your fucking mouth because I will happily fight you in this park. Right here, right now." Jazmine gritted her teeth as she stepped closer to the woman. If they were not in a park full of children she would have been dragged by now.

"Ugh how pure! Swearing in front of children. No wonder your daughter is the way she is."

All of a sudden, a baby timb found its way in the woman's face and the whole park went silent in shook.

"Ugly face!" The three-year-old stuck out her tongue as she watched the blood leak from the mean woman's nose.

"I am going to teach you a lesson!" The woman tried to dive for the child but Jazmine's right hook intercepted her journey.

"I was dying to do that." Jazmine muttered as the mother dropped to the floor. Jazmine jumped onto of her and began slapping her because she knew that if she punched her then she would be bloody and Jazmine didn't want to see her son in too bad of shape.

By now the mothers in the park was shielding their children and some running away. Huey saw some begin to take out their phone and knew they had to go.

"Jazmine. We need to leave." He pulled her off the crying female, picked up his baby cousin and her bag as Jazmine screamed one last thing.

"If I ever catch you slipping it's on sight! Don't every chat 'bout my girl like that again!"

The mother of the son who Coco beat up, curled up and cried and Jazmine was satisfied with her damage.

"Let's go." Jazmine picked up the shoe and followed as Huey began to walk away.

They continued walking until they got far enough from the playground. They found a bench and Jazmine and Huey sat down as Coco stood in front of them.

"Ugh I wished I did worse to that woman for putting her hands on you. Who does that to someone else's child?!" Jazmine screamed as she looked at her arm. She took a bottle of water out of the bag and began to wash off her cut and Huey put on her shoe.

"I did bad?" Coco frowned as she saw the adult's mad faces.

"No Coco. You did good. Like how we taught you." Huey reassured her.

"Ok. I hurt boy and boy mommy."

Jazmine remembered the shoe flying and laughed. "Yes you did and you did very good. I was shocked but Huey shouldn't you be telling her hitting people is bad and all that?"

"Have you seen our family? We fight from the womb. And she did it in self-defence." He shrugged.

"I guess... now that that's over, where to next?"

"Chicken!"

The adults looked at each other.

"The Princess has spoken. I guess we're going to have food now. We should get a bandage for her too." Jazmine told Huey as he nodded in agreement.

Jazmine held onto Coco hands and began to walk but then decided to reach out for Huey's hand and once she grabbed a hold of it, she gave him a tight squeeze and a smile. Huey wasn't one for PDA but he somehow was comfortable with this.

* * *

The three had come back from eating out and Coco was already asleep on Huey's shoulder.

"I'm going to put her in my room." He told her. Jazmine nodded before watching him walk into his room.

Jazmine sat there wondering how this day could get any crazier. She didn't expect herself to be fighting no woman in a park but her reason was valid. She was protecting that little girl, she got what was coming to her. It also made her think about herself. She was 25, a stripper with no man and no kids. No judgement to anyone like her but it was never how she saw herself. A privileged child who had both parents (despite their terrible relationship) and everything handed to her. If she stayed, she would have guessed she would have had a stable career, maybe a husband and with a child on the way. Even thinking about it now made her sick, she preferred the life she was living now. She was living good in her eyes. Jazmine felt as if she was in the best place possible and she wouldn't change it for the world.

"You alright Jazmine." Huey asked as she walked back into the room and sat next to her on the couch.

"Yeah, very eventful day I guess. Never thought I would end up babysitting." She snorted.

"You and me both." Huey rolled his eyes. "At least Coco isn't a moody child."

Jazmine sighed as she picked up the remote and leaned her head on his shoulder.

"Now while she's having a nap lets relax and watch a movie."

The two sat and watched an action film Jazmine had picked out and not even half way through it they fell asleep, hoping to get some sleep before the bubbly Cori wakes up from her nap. They were in the comfort of each other's arms and they were enjoying this moment as much as they could.

Everyone spent their time relaxed and unbothered and enjoying the life around them but little did they know, there were lurking eyes everywhere.

* * *

**Ugh I finally got it out. I was stuck so much on this chapter because I don't want the story to be rushed. It would have been much much shorter but I am trying to make the chapters as long as possible so you can get more. I think Coco was a nice little touch after I was blank for days on what to write. Let me know if you liked her little pop up.**

**Bulmas Ego: I glad you liked the dance scene I didn't think it was that good. I watched Hustler's that weekend so it helped me come up with the idea dancing. Jayden may make an appearance soon so just stay tuned. Thank you for your reviews!**

**Guest: Thank you so much. Don't worry about being late as long as you review so I know you still reading lool. Can't rush Juey. It's there but not fully there yet like Royalty and Riley. We just gotta wait and see.**

**Anyhow. R&R. Lemme know what you think about this and what might happen next. I love reading about what you have to say.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	23. Chapter 23: A Freeman BBQ

"You. What information do you have?"

Vladimir sat in his tall black chair looking at his minions. It had been three weeks and he asked his people to collect intel on the enemies. They killed their shooter then stole and slaughtered his men at his warehouse. Vladimir was not going to let them off easy, he wanted them to feel pain. The one he was addressing stood in front of his boss shaking in fear. He had nothing for him.

"Um... I... he... he has a club..." The guy answered nervously.

That wasn't the answer Vladimir was looking for.

"Yes. Yes I know. Empire." He answered. The man breathed in relief feeling as he got off. That was until a bullet impaled his skull just a second later. The body crumpled to the floor and the room fell silent. "Now. Who wants to give me useful fucking information about this fucking gang! They got Zach, I need something!" He screamed. He began waving the gun around waiting to shoot anyone else with a stupid answer.

"He opened another club. The Blue Moon. A strip club." The blonde spoke up first feeling as he gave a good answer.

"A strip club? What would he want with that? I want you to go down there and find out what he's doing there." He saw his face light up. "Don't get no fucking ideas. Don't be looking at the whores and giving them money. Go there, find out what he's doing and leave. Do I make myself clear?" The blonde man nodded. "What's next?"

A young boy stepped up. "Related the club, there are four girls. They go by the names of Emerald, Diamond, Ruby and Sapphire. I have pictures too."

He pulled out an envelope of all four girls entering and leaving the club.

"What does this have to do with Ghost?" Vladimir questioned annoyingly.

"These girls have been seen with these men. It seems as if they're in a relationship with each other. The dread with the blonde, the Asian with the Asian, the younger one with the black girl and the leader with the light skin girl."

Vladimir sat back in thought with this new information. He looked at each picture and smirked. He had them. He knew how to get to them. Here Ghost and his little friends were carelessly relaxed and walking around with these girls. Even if they were just whores, he still planned on killing them. He was going to kill them all.

"You did well Blake. I am proud. You did better than that son of a bitch." He referred to the dead body on the floor. "You will go with Andy and find out more about the girls. Am I clear?"

"Yes boss."

"Good. Now. Get out my face!" Vladimir screamed to the men in his room. They all hurried out of the room to leave their boss alone.

Vladimir sat looking at the pictures again just so he could get a good look at them again. They were very sexy girls, no wonder they became the sluts they are. Girls with looks like them are only good for these kinds of things. It makes him wonder if he should keep them to pleasure him and his men before slitting their throats. Yeah, that sounds like a plan.

"Soon, your little gang will fall little boy... you don't deserve any of your shit!" Vladimir shouted. He pulled out a knife and stabbed the picture of Ghost hitting him right in the forehead. As he looked at the shiny blade, another thought popped into his mind and he smirked. He picked up his phone and began to make some calls. He was going to destroy The Panthers.

* * *

"Yes mom, we know. We will be there soon, let me just finish getting dressed." Huey sighed as he rubbed his forehead at his worried mother. "I won't forget. Love you too bye."

Huey threw down his phone. Today was his grandfather, Robert Freeman's birthday and the family were throwing him a BBQ with all his family and friends. Huey wanted to wear all black today but decided to be nice and wear purple for his grandfather who continued to believe he was a pimp. He wore black jeans, black and purple Jordan's and a black shirt. Today was meant to be hot but he didn't care. As he was tying up his laces, he saw he was getting another call but this time it was from Caesar.

"Caesar." He answered.

"Sup negro! You ready?" Caesar energetically asked.

"Yeah. I'll be down." As simple as that, Huey hung up and left his apartment to go to his friends.

Once he stepped inside, he saw his brothers and friends had also incorporated purple into their outfits. Hiro had a purple Dragon Bull Z t-shirt with purple vans and ripped jeans. Riley had grey shorts, a different pair of black and purple Jordan's and a purple Kenzo t-shirt. Finally, Caesar had jean shorts, a Lakers top and white air forces.

"Nigga I still don't understand why you wearing white shoes to a BBQ." Riley shook his head as he looked at his older friend.

"Because a nigga can buy another pair if it gets dirty." He smirked making Riley roll his eyes.

Hiro checked the time. "Well we're already on your people time and we should leave now because we still have two more stops to go to."

"The fuck you mean 'your people' time?" Riley questioned.

"Riley you know what he means. It started nearly 2 hours ago. And what do you mean 2 stops, we only have one." Huey raised his eyebrow.

Caesar smiled so big it scared Huey which said a lot. There was a very short list of things that scared Huey Freeman.

"Spit it out Michael." Huey demanded. He needed to know what the boy was hiding to the very last minute.

Caesar threw his arm around his friend as they began to walk out, his mysterious ways making its way through his smile.

"Well I may or may not have invited a group of girls to come with us."

Huey stopped.

"You do not mean..." He started but was cut off by his brother.

"Yeaaaahhh! My girl coming." Riley jumped in grinning from ear to ear.

"I thought I was the only one that has a label on shit. You together together?" Hiro asked.

Immediately Riley went quiet, he let that part slip. "Well. We haven't said anything about it. I don't know what she want sometimes, she just so confusing but don't worry, if I still have that ass in 2 weeks I will wife it."

"Wife? A bit extreme isn't it." Caesar teased.

"You know what I mean nigga."

"Whatever. How are we going to introduce them to our mothers? You know they already had a mothers meeting about the strip club thing. You think they don't chat shit together?" Huey said.

"They won't be saying much once those girls are carrying their grandchildren." Caesar pointed at him.

"You really thinking about having babies right now?"

"We only getting older. We might as well start sometime soon." He shrugged.

"Yeah. I would love to sit and continue this talk about babies but we got shit to do so leggo." Hiro pushed his friends towards the cars and off they went.

They first picked up a few presents for their grandfather which was some simple clothes and a good month supply of his prized orange juice. The same one he beat his sons and grandsons over if they drank some. They then went to the girl's house to pick them up. As they rolled up, Huey beeped his horn to signal he was outside and it only took them a few minutes to come out.

The outfits were enough to make all their jaws drop because they knew they would have the best-looking girls at the BBQ.

Cindy's straight hair fell to her waist, a white Levi top, ¾ jeans and white Nike's. Ming wore her hair in a high ponytail, black jean skirt, a yellow off shoulder top and white and black Superstars. Royalty wore a dark purple wig, grey cycling shorts and crop top and white air forces. Finally, Jazmine had on a simple red summer dress with sandals, her hair in two buns and sunglasses on top.

They all strutted out in style making the boys watch them intensely.

"We some lucky niggas man." Riley said next to Huey.

Huey didn't say anything but knew his brother was right even though he knew all this was wrong. They shouldn't be coming. They were too close already but these girls seemed to have put a spell on them and now they couldn't let go.

"Hey guys!" Jazmine greeted as her and Royalty jumped in the car while the other two went with Hiro and Caesar.

"You good Mariah?" Riley asked, causing her to roll her eyes. "You looking hella fine baby." Riley smirked as he looked Royalty up and down. "Looking like a fine ass grape."

Royalty and Jazmine laughed. "You crazy nigga. Thanks."

"Your fat ass likes it so you can't stay mad." He smirked.

"I will hit you upside the head from this backseat, don't try me." Royalty pointed at him but he just laughed and turned his attention back to the front.

"So Huey. What should be expect from your family?" Jazmine asked as she saw they were getting close to the destination when she could hear the light sound of music.

"Everything." He simply answered.

"What?" The girls said in confusion.

"What this nigga trying to say is, we crazy motherfuckers but we the best people you will ever meet." Riley smirked at them. His smirked scared them but it was too late to run because they were already here. They just had to hope for the best.

As they all jumped out the car, three girls walked past them and gave a flirtatious glance at the brothers.

"Hey boys." They smiled before strutting their way towards the back and purposely swaying their hips in their direction.

It was obvious what they were trying to achieve and it didn't sit right with Royalty or Jazmine. "Hey boys." Royalty added a fake giggle as she mocked the girls that just walked past them, making Jazmine laugh.

Huey sighed, knowing it was going to be a long day.

"Let's just get it over with."

The eight of them walked around the back and immediately, people turned to greet them. The girls watched how the boys all said hello to people around them and did their best to quickly introduced them to their family and friends. It was overwhelming at first but they knew they would have to be used to it since it was going to happen all day.

"Oh my goodness! My babies!" Everyone turned to see a large black woman running towards them. Within seconds, she managed to pull all four men into a tight hug and somehow managed to kiss them all on the cheek despite her smaller statue. "Look at you, getting bigger by the day. Thank you Jesus!" She stepped back and smiled at them before hitting each one of them.

"Ow Aunt Cookie! Why you do that for?" Riley complained as he rubbed his arm.

"Because look how long it has been since I have seen any of you."

"You know we have been taking care of things. Its been crazy." Huey told her.

The older woman sighed before holding onto both of her nephew cheeks. She was about to say something more until she saw four girls standing behind them. Cookie grabbed onto their ears tightly and pulled them down to her height.

"Who are these girls and why is they with you?"

Riley screwed up his face and answered her. "They our girls' man shi- ow!"

Cookie had slapped him again before getting a grip back on his ear. "You know not to be swearing around me. What was you thinking about bringing them here with the things you do? We all know Raven was fine because she was born into this. She knows this lifestyle. I expected this from Riley but not you Huey."

"Hey!"

"I know aunt Cookie. You can blame Caesar for that, he invited them and Hiro is the only one that in an actual relationship. We're all just friends." Huey told her.

Aunt Cookie sighed and walked over to Caesar and Hiro and slapped them both too causing the girls to look at them all shocked. Within two minutes the boys have been slapped at least 4 times. She then went to greet the new guest.

"Hi, my name is Cookie but you can call me aunt Cookie like everyone around here calls me." She smiled at them and they smiled back.

"Hello aunt Cookie! My name is Jazmine and this is Ming, Cindy and Royalty."

"Ain't you some beautiful women. I don't see what you be doing with these clueless boys."

"Trust me, I ask myself that every day." Royalty joked.

"That's not funny girl." Riley frowned.

"Don't listen to him. Now go say happy birthday to the birthday boy, I have to continue cooking." Aunt Cookie gave one last smile to the women and a glare to the men before walking back into the house.

"And that's aunt Cookie for you. Come on, you still gotta meet the rest of the fam." Caesar smiled.

They walked over to where Huey and Riley's grandfather was dancing with a much younger woman.

"Grandad." Huey called but got no answer. "Grandad." Nothing. He sighed. "Grandad!"

"What you want little nigga?!" He shouted back as he looked over to his grandson who he was purposely trying to avoid. He had a cutie on his arms and didn't need his grandsons butting in.

"Damn. We just wanted to say happy birthday that's all." Hiro shook his head.

"Yeah yeah yeah. Thank you. Now if you excuse me, I got a girl here I would like to dance wi... well hello cutie pies." Robert Freeman stopped when he saw who was behind his grandsons. All four girls came in different shades just how he liked and was about to approach them when Caesar stepped up.

"Grandad, this is Jazmine, Cindy, Royalty and Ming." Caesar introduced.

"And what are you knuckle heads doing with these cute girls?" Their grandfather stared them down.

"Why does no one believe we can have such good-looking girls?" Hiro threw his hands up in the air in defeat.

"Because you're all some bunch of bitch ass niggas."

The girls couldn't contain themselves and began to burst out in laughter. Everyone seemed to be getting onto the boys today and it was just hilarious to witness.

"I have no time for this." Huey shook his head as he saw his parents talking to his uncles so decided to go over there. "Come on Jazmine."

Jazmine was shocked when he reached out for her but she grabbed his hand and let him walk her to where ever he was going with Riley and Royalty behind while the other four went into a different direction. She could feel everyone staring at them as they walked through the crowd and they all had shocked facial expressions.

"Huey, where we going?" She asked but he didn't need to answer because she saw Huey's parents standing in front of her by the drinks table.

As she laid her green eyes on them, she couldn't believe it. Thinking back to the picture she saw in his house all she could say was black really didn't crack. They looked exactly the same as they did nearly 10 years ago. His mother's skin was clear and glowing in the sun and his father was looking sharp as ever. As she looked at the two men around them, she knew those were Huey's uncles because the family resemblance was uncanny.

"Uncle Dom. Uncle Rio." Huey and Riley nodded to them which they gave back. "Mom. Dad."

"Sup sons." Their father pulled them into a quick hug as he patted them on their backs while their mother gave them kisses on the cheek.

"I miss having my kids in the same place at the same time. How you doing?" Mackenzie smiled showing off her dimples.

"We doing good. This Royalty and Jazmine." Hearing the last name in the sentence made the parents look at each other in surprise.

"Jazmine? As in the one you took out on a date Jazmine?" Their father questioned in amusement as he saw the embarrassed look on Huey's face.

"Yeah. That Jazmine." Huey couldn't help but to admitted.

Jazmine decided to introduce herself.

"Hi, it's very nice to meet you." She smiled and waved at them.

"Likewise." Christian smiled back.

"We have yet to hear about you Royalty. This one been very quiet lately which is unlikely of the boy." Mackenzie crossed her arms as she stared down her last born.

"I don't be saying my business like that." He tried to defended himself.

"Nigga the streets know your business. Stop playing." One of the uncles said.

"You trifling uncle Rio." Riley frowned.

"We just playing with your bitch ass." Dominic laughed at his nephews annoyed face. "I hear you met at the club."

Jazmine and Royalty looked shocked. Did everyone know about them?

"Um yeah we did." Royalty answered.

"Well Empire is a good place to go. I'm surprised its only now they saw some beautiful women as yourself." Mario smiled.

Knowing their uncle was wrong, the brothers shared a quick glance at each other. Before they could agree and move on, Robert came back over with the same woman on his arms.

"I knew you four looked familiar. You them Gem girls at The Blue Moon. How my knuckle head grandsons get with you? You tore that stage up! Them reveals yall did and those dances, made this old man happy. I will be seeing you again tonight to really bring my birthday to a close. Anyway, I got some Spades to play, I will talk to you later."

Not realising how awkward he just made things, Robert walked away without a care in the world.

The group of adults all stood the frozen but the only thing that was moving was their eyes as they looked at each other shocked.

"Oh, you mean you met at the club club. Ok. Respect." Mario nodded, not being the one to like silence.

Mackenzie finally snapped out of her shock. "I was hoping I didn't hear right but I guess I did. I'm going to go talk to Raven's mother so if you excuse me." With that, she walked away but not without her sons seeing the disapproving look on her face.

"Don't think too deep into that. It's all cool. It was very nice to meet you girls trust me. I hope my sons are treating you right and introducing you to the family." Christian jumped in trying to lighten the mood.

"Thank you Mr. Freeman-"

"Please call me Christian or Chris."

Jazmine continued. "I mean Christian. We have already met his cousins because they came to the um... club and I met Coco because Huey and I looked after her while Dante was busy." Jazmine smiled despite the tense air a second ago which made Huey wonder how she managed to do it.

"You already met my grandbaby? Wow. I am shocked." Dominic looked at her in disbelief.

"I am really tired of everyone being shocked today." Huey mumbled.

"Yes she is so adorable. She is a bright child." Jazmine smiled.

"Yeah she is a fire that one just like my two granddaughters." Mario grinned.

Christian looked at his brothers and shook his head. "You don't need to rub it in my face that you have grandchildren and I do not which reminds me. You two need to hurry up and have some, I'm not getting any younger and I know you will be the first to have the son of the family."

Huey and Riley felt the heat rush through their body at their fathers' statement. They expect this from their mother not their father.

"I'm still young! Let me live." Riley frowned.

Their father shrugged. "That means your swimmers are working just fine. Put them to use instead of just shooting them-"

"I think it's time we meet up with their other friends', bye." Huey had to cut off the conversation before his dad could get even more humiliating.

He pulled the girls away from the dying of laughter men who thought it was hilarious to be talking the way they did.

"I can already tell this is going to be a very very long day." Huey sighed as he rubbed his forehead.

Jazmine, whose face was slowly turning back to its original colour after turning red at the grandchildren situation, gave Huey a warm smile.

"Come on Huey. It's not that bad. At least they didn't call us a whore like my family did."

Huey raised an eyebrow. "They called you a whore?"

"Yup. Right to my face. Said we wouldn't be shit for the lifestyle we chose and were glad I got my father's last name and not theirs to tarnish it." She shrugged as if it was nothing. "Let's not dwell on the past. I want to have some fun!"

"There's nothing fun to do." Huey told her.

"What black people get together isn't fun? I know you lying." Jazmine crossed her arms over her chest as she looked up at Huey.

Before he could say anything, Ming, Hiro, Caesar and Cindy came back from where every they went.

"Ay man, I saw your moms. She didn't look to happy." Caesar told them.

"Yeah, she tripping bruh. Mad about some girls. Walked away when she found out they strippers." Riley spoke up first.

Hiro snorted. "For real? Damn. That shits crazy. Anyway ladies, you stay here while we get you something to eat."

The roommates found some seats and sat down as they waited for their food to be brought out to them.

"So, who did you two meet?" Royalty asked.

"We met their parents. They were... nice I guess." Ming shrugged.

"At least you didn't have the birthday boy run up half way through the conversation and tell their uncles and parents that you a stripper."

Cindy and Ming's mouth dropped open. "No fucking way."

"Yes fucking way." Jazmine confirmed. "If you saw the look of disappointment on their moms face while their uncles thought it was hilarious. They even talked about having babies!"

Cindy burst out in laughter. "I guess we got lucky Ming."

"Damn straight. Did you hear what their aunt was saying to them when we walked in?" Ming asked.

"No I couldn't really hear anything. What she say?" They all leaned forward so they could hear clearly.

"She was cussing them saying they shouldn't have brought us here because of the gang and shit." Ming explained.

Jazmine shrugged. "I don't blame her. We dumb as fuck but they too interesting to give up now. Things have just started getting good."

"Girl. All you've done is kiss a little here and there." Cindy squinted her eyes at her friend.

"Baby steps Cin. I can feel it."

"Where? In ya vagina?" Royalty pulled the same face as Cindy.

"I hate you all. Really and truly." Jazmine rolled her green eyes. "But seriously. I know what I'm talking about. Royalty and Riley would be a couple by now but they're both too hard-headed. You do know when you're in a relationship you can still fuck. It's not going anywhere." Jazmine smirked.

Royalty pointed to the strawberry blonde. "You know what. If you wanna go we can go."

Before the two could start their pretend fight, the four men came back with two plates in each of their hands.

"It's about time you get back. A bitch hungry." Cindy licked her lips as she saw her the contents on her plate.

"That's right girl. Taste that seasoning." Caesar teased.

"Shut up." She tried her best to say but she had already stuffed her mouth with mac and cheese.

They all sat and ate their food, enjoying each other's company and the music playing in the background. They talked about all and random things, forgetting their problems for a second.

"Jazzzyyy!"

The group heard a little girl call the mixed girls name and turned to see Coco followed by another little girl that looked around the same age.

Jazmine held her arms out and the girl happily ran into them. "Hey Coco! How are you?"

"Gooood!" She answered. The other little girl went over to Riley and sat in his lap.

"Sup Tay."

"Hi Riley. I miss you." Her light brown eyes looked up at him with a frown on her face.

"You can blame your daddy for that."

Confused, Cindy spoke up first. "And who are these two cuties?"

"This is Coco. The one I was telling you about." Jazmine smiled. "These are my friends, Ming, Cindy and Royalty." They all looked at Coco and they shared a smile with each other.

"This is Anthony's daughter, Tay. She's 4." At her name, she hid away from all the eyes on her. She was much shyer than Coco who was the outgoing and hyperactive girl.

"You all so pretty." Coco stared in awe at all the girls in front of her.

"And you are just adorable and you Tay." Royalty grinned.

"Thank you! I picked my shoes." Coco began to swing her feet showing off her silver, glittery Dr Martens.

They were going to continue talking to the young Freeman's when Anthony walked over.

"Hey everyone." He greeted. "I hate to break this up but you two have to eat, come on. You can talk to them later."

"Aww. Do we have to?" Coco frowned.

"Yes Coco. You don't want your dad to come for you now do you." Anthony raised his eyebrow.

"No."

"Right. Now, let's go." He held out his hands for them to grab onto which they did. "Later guys."

The eight were left alone again talking about every and anything.

"Marvel is better than DC, hands down." Riley shrugged.

"How are you just saying that crazy shit out loud. We have endless amounts of God's!" Cindy threw her hands up in defeat.

"As do we." Royalty jumped in.

"Superman alone could wipe out the Avengers if he really wanted to." Ming smirked. "Superman can run endless laps around Quicksilver. He could run around the whole of earth before he could run around the whole of Europe."

"All we have to do is throw a little Kryptonite at him and he's done for the count."

"All we need to do is take away Iron Man's money and he is useless."

"But wouldn't that be the same with Batman?" Riley smirked.

"The only difference is, without the suits, Batman would win." Caesar smirked back.

Hiro laughed. "He ain't lying."

"If we talk about movie success, who has it better?" Jazmine grinned.

Huey spoke up for the first time in a while. "Marvel. It is undeniable that they do good with each film they do and have the highest grossing film. DC has yet to reach the top 20 overall films."

"Well that's some bullshi-" Cindy started but paused when she felt Royalty abruptly stop her.

"It's that time!" She shouted. Cameo – Candy began to play and Royalty was already running into the middle.

Caesar shook his head but stood up. "Damn she fast." Jazmine and Riley followed him as they heard the DJ play the song from the beginning again.

"You not coming Huey?" Jazmine asked.

"I don't dance."

Jazmine rolled her eyes. "I will make you one day." With that, she walked up to where Royalty was excitedly waiting for the song to begin again.

Huey sat and watched them dance. Caesar was having the time of his life and was exaggerating every little step as well as throwing in extra moves, making them laugh from where they were sitting. Riley was all over Royalty causing her to giggle but she tried her best to not let him distract her no matter how hard he tried. Then there was Jazmine. Her light caramel skin was glowing in the blazing sun which made her look more radiate as ever. That smile that Huey couldn't believe was 100% genuine, was on show and smiling at all his family and friends around her despite her not knowing them. It was as if she had known them for at least a year, he didn't know how she could do it.

The song came to an end and they all came back over with smiles all over their faces. Riley had Royalty pulled into the side as he threw his arm around her shoulder and was talking into her ear.

"Did you have fun?" Cindy smiled as Caesar came over to sit next to her again.

"Of course baby. Whenever that song comes on, a nigga gotta get up. Maybe I will teach you one day." Caesar flirted, causing her to push him away from her.

Jazmine spoke up with a large grin on her face. "Let's just enjoy the time we have left before we have to go work."

* * *

The sun had set and it was now the girls time to take their leave. After they danced some more with the family, they basically completely forgot about the people who brought them there. It had been so long since they had been to a party that was all about family, making them wonder if it was time to go back home but that was to think about later. Royalty was dominating the dominoes table, showing off her skills that she had learnt back in Jamaica, Jazmine couldn't stop dancing, Ming talked a lot with Hiro's parents and Cindy spent her time giving people a run for their money in a game of Uno which was very intense.

They couldn't believe how welcoming people were being to them but they didn't wish for it to be any different. This was the best scenario they could think of happening but like all good things, it had to come to an end. They had to go to work.

"Thank you so much for having us! It was very nice to meet you." Were just a few things they continued to say as they made their way out. When they got to Mackenzie Freeman it was a bit awkward but they all kept their smile on their faces.

"Bye mama." Riley leaned forward to give her a hug and a kiss like the good son they raised him to be.

"Bye baby. Come see me soon ok. I feel as if I deserve some spoiling since you boys don't know how to stay in my good books lately." She smiled but they knew she was being very serious.

"We'll see." Riley smirked as he gave his dad a quick hug.

Their mother crossed her arms making the girls laugh behind them. "We'll see my ass. I best find some new shoes or some shit in my house very soon. You know my size."

Christian pulled his wife into his arms and kissed her neck. "Come on girl. You know they out here doing their thing."

Mackenzie hummed. "Yeah sure. They can find time for their mother like they find time for them girls."

Huey sighed. "I know. We apologise. We will make it up to you, promise." Now when it came to the woman who birthed him, Huey was undeniably soft. He couldn't be his usually closed off self because she would pull him up on that. "We need to be going now."

Aunt Cookie had come over to get her goodbyes as Caesar and Hiro took their turn to say bye.

"It was lovely to meet you girls. Don't hesitate to come by again." She had pulled them all into a loving hug making them turn red from the sudden lack of air.

Jazmine was the first to speak. "We will thank you. Bye aunt Cookie and Mr and Mrs Freeman."

"I told you call me Chris." He smiled. They nodded and made their way to the car to wait for the boys to come out.

Aunt Cookie's face became serious.

"Now I am going to say what I said before." She pointed at each male in front of her. "Protect them girls at all cost because if you don't, they will get hurt and I know you are some good boys but you have to remember who you are. You are a leader of a whole gang Huey! Remember as long as you shall live there are people out there that want to hurt you. Don't act like I don't be hearing what is happening in them streets. Just be careful nephews. I am going to clean up, goodnight." With that, she walked away with Mackenzie following behind but not without her giving them a look that said 'listen to what she said'.

Christian stepped up. "I know they waiting for you. Go. I will see you later."

Silently, they all walked out of the backyard and got into the cars to drop the girls off with a lot on their mind.

* * *

Huey was sitting at the bar on his own deep in thought. All day he was told to be careful. Has he not been careful? Has he really been slipping? Maybe Raven was right from the beginning. The girls were a distraction from what really mattered. He knew something was off but he chose to ignore it which was something he always hated to do. He was being stupid, irresponsible and reckless. His father should be disappointed in him. He was screwing everything up. Huey should have realised it sooner. They were going down a fucked-up path, they didn't need to have the girls strung along. Maybe he was never meant to find a sweet girl like Jazmine. He needed to find a girl already in the game but not even his father did that.

"Damn. I never thought you could look more depressed."

Huey looked up to see Raven smirking at him. He had seen her at the BBQ but didn't expect to see her here.

"What you doing here?"

She shrugged. "I saw the conversation you were having before you left and it didn't look too good so I decided to come and cheer you up since I am a good friend and all."

"I'm fine."

"Sure. You have been getting lectures left, right and centre as if you are two. Trust me, I know how it feels." She patted him on the shoulder before order a drink. "Now, our people are getting restless. What's the next move Ghost?"

He turned his natural red eyes towards her. "Good question..." He breathed in before getting serious. "They are planning something. I know they have. I have been slacking and they know that. I need to find anywhere else they are hiding their stash. Remember that piece of shit you caught? Yeah, that shipment is coming in next week, I heard they had to delay it because of the last robber but we getting that shit too. We need to be on top of our game because I feel like some serious shit is going down. I ain't fucking around no more. My head is back in the game. I am not letting shit get in my way anymo-"

"Huey! Huey!"

The leader got cut off when he saw two girls running towards him. He looked up and saw his brother running towards the private rooms which made him worried.

"What?"

They were both panicking and on the cuff of tears. "It's Diamond and Emerald! These two dudes tried to hurt them and said your names and-" They didn't have time to explain as he already jumped up. His gut feelings were coming true.

"Raven. I need you to do me a huge favour. Shut everything down now. All customers and all girls out now."

Raven nodded before jogging over to the DJ booth and took the mic before he could stop her as Huey ran to the back.

"Hey motherfuckers! Sorry to spoil your night but you need to get the fuck out. Don't try and fight and argue, you just all need to get the fuck out which goes for employees too. If you want to continue partying your night away, go down to Empire, I will hook you up with some free shit to make up for this." She said and as soon as everyone heard free, they were already out the door. Raven got out of the booth to make sure the girls in the dressing room heard too, all while wondering what was happening in the back.

* * *

10 minutes before

Diamond and Emerald had been summoned to a private room as usual. Emerald had on black shorts, silver heels and a silver bandeau. Diamond had on a white thong under her white, short skirt and a blue crop top that stopped just under her breast paired with clear heels.

"You ready sis?" Diamond asked her partner in crime.

"I stay ready." Emerald smirked.

They walked inside and saw two white boys. One had blonde hair and the other had black hair.

"And who do we have here?" She asked seductively.

"My names Andy. This is Blake, he's new to all this." The blonde smirked, looking them up and down. His boss told him to not spend money on them but he couldn't help it.

Blake sat there nervous as fuck. He hoped that he didn't have to do no field work when he joined the gang. He just hoped to help with things here and there plus he hasn't even been fully trained yet. Maybe he should have let someone else present the information.

"Cute names for cute boys." Diamond smiled as she went and sat on Andy's lap.

"Thanks baby. I like yours too." He smiled back. They could hear a slight Russian accent but didn't pay much attention to it.

Emerald saw how scared the other one looked so sat next to him but put her manicured hand on his chest.

'He looks like a baby.' She thought. 'As long as I am getting paid.'

Music began to play so Diamond moved her hips to the song while stroking her hands over her body. Emerald unfortunately had the difficult one which meant it was harder for her to do her job.

"Your friend over there forced you to come out?" She asked as she stroked his face causing goose bumps to form on his cheeks.

"Uh- yeah. You can say that." He replied nervously.

"Don't worry, I am not going to hurt you." She smiled sweetly.

"Stop being a little bitch Blakey! Live a little, you know I am." Andy shouted as he pulled out some money to throw over the girl.

Emerald rolled her eyes but turned back to the young boy. "It ok to be nervous. I won't do anything too crazy."

What they heard next shocked the girls to the core.

"Is this how you fuck Reezy?"

The whole atmosphere in the room dropped to a painful low. Diamond froze as well as they shared a look.

"Don't act so shocked. We know you fucking Ghost. Cheeky one ain't you."

"I think we're done for the day." Emerald stood up but as Diamond tried to, things went sideways.

As Diamond tried to jump up and run, Andy pulled out a knife and slashed it across her exposed stomach causing her to scream in fright as he pushed her down to the floor. Emerald stood there shocked as she saw her little sister on the floor crying and clutching her stomach with red liquid pouring from in between her fingers. Andy looked down at the crying girl and laughed while Blake looked horrified. This was not supposed to happen. Emerald had to snap out of her shocked state and do something to get them both out of there. She saw the unopened champagne bottle and knew she could use this. Within seconds she picked it up, swung and hit him right across the head. Once his head made contact with the bottle, his eyes shut and his body slouched. She was happy the bottle was here.

"Come on! We need to go!" By now Emerald had tears running down her face but had to do her best to be strong enough to get them both outside. She helped Diamond up and threw one of her arms around her shoulder and helped her run outside. Blake was in there checking on Andy but they didn't care.

"He fucking stabbed me Jazz. I am going to die!"

What felt like hours later, they were finally made it outside. "You're not going to die!" Jazmine shouted back. She slammed the door shut and locked it, hoping to keep them in there long enough.

"Oh my gosh! Diamond what happened?!" Emerald looked up and saw the frightened face of Rose and Daisy as they looked at Diamonds white skirt stained with blood.

"Listen! I need you to get Riley and Huey asap! Tell them the person that hurt us mentioned them by name." Emerald snapped at them. They nodded and raced outside. She turned back to the injured girl. "Let me see." Her green eyes stared deep into her mixed eyes. Diamond nodded and moved her shaky hand. "Ok. Ok. You good baby girl. Everything is going to be ok Roy Roy." Jazmine did her best to convinced Royalty but was about a second away from breaking down completely herself.

"Ok Jazzy. We good. We good..." Royalty breathed out.

"Ay I heard- Fuck baby!"

Riley had ran around the corner and was already kneeling down next to Royalty.

"The motherfucker stabbed you?!" He screamed, obviously fuming. All Royalty could do was nod as she began to cry again. "I got you don't worry." He turned to Jazmine. "You can fix her up?"

Jazmine's eyes grew in size. "Um I think so- I can try." She said nervously.

"That's good enough."

Just as fast as Riley, Huey ran around the same corner and stopped at the sight in front of him. Jazmine and Royalty covered in blood.

"What happened?" He asked but without even knowing what happened, his blood pressure began to rise.

In the back, they could hear the music stop and Raven talking on the mic but didn't concentrate on what she was saying as they were focused on something else.

"We were just doing our normal thing when he mentioned you two as Reezy and Ghost. When we tried to leave, the blonde pulled out a knife and cut Royalty."

"Go to the back, get dressed and do your best to fix her up. Alex will have a better look. We will sort this shit out."

"Huey-" Jazmine tried to talk to him but by his harden facial expression, she knew that was not going to happen.

"Jazmine. Just listen to me. I need you to do this now. Don't worry about what is going to happen in this room." Huey told her sternly. He pulled out his gun as did Riley and the two girls couldn't help but stare at it, remembering the type of lifestyle they live.

All she could do was nod. With Riley's help, Royalty managed to stand and began to walk away with Jazmine.

"Let's do this shit." Riley didn't waste a second and burst into the room. "Which one of you bitch ass niggas hurt my girl!" He raised his gun ready to shoot if necessary.

By now, the blonde just began to wake up as the younger one jumped up shocked.

"Uh I um-"

"Uh uh nothing motherfucker! Answer my question nigga!" He roared.

The blonde chuckled. "I did nigga. What you going to do about it- ahhh shit!"

Riley had fired two shots. One in his knee cap and the other in his shoulder.

"I don't know who you calling a nigga but it ain't me."

Huey walked over to the younger one and pulled him up by the throat.

"Tell me what you fucking know." Huey stared deep into his eyes. Since Huey was taller, he towered over him making him look even more threatening.

"Don't tell him shit!" The bleeding man shouted through gritted teeth.

Riley was now overly pissed. "Shut the fuck up!" He screamed before putting three bullets in his head. That definitely will shut him up.

"Now. You have one chance to tell me what you fucking know, or he will make your brains spray all over this fucking room like your friend here." Huey lifted his gun and forced it into the only man standing mouth who began to quiver in fear. "I'm feeling generous which is why you're not dead already but if you don't start talking it will be soon rather than fucking later."

Blake couldn't stop shaking. He didn't want to die.

"I will tell you everything! Just don't shoot me please Reezy!" He sighed. "Vladimir knows you hang out with them girls. I-I was the one that supplied him with the picture of you eight. We were just supposed to check this place out and leave I swear! I don't know what came over him. It wasn't meant to be like this! I didn't want to come but Vladimir told me to! He told us to not spend no money and just look but he had to screw up the one simple order we had because he was thirsty. That's all I know I swear! I'm new, I'm just getting in on shit!" Blake blurted out in fear. He peered to the dead body of his former 'colleague' and wanted to vomit in his mouth.

Huey threw down the boy and stood over him.

"You're all useless pieces of shits." He raised his gun to the boy whose eyes widened.

"Wait wait wait- you said you wasn't going to shot me! Please Ghost." He cried.

Ghost looked over at Reezy and they both smirked at each other before he looked back at the crying boy.

"I said he wouldn't shot you. I didn't say anything about me."

"No no please!" But it was too late. A bullet had penetrated his lungs. He was about to choke on his own blood.

"Bitch ass nigga." Reezy spat on the one he shoot before turning around to go check on Royalty.

Huey stood there watching his rival gang members blood formed in his mouth. He could hear each struggling breath as he stared up to the ceiling, probably having his short life flash before his eyes. He watched the life drain from his face and felt satisfaction when he saw that it all had escaped his body. Huey turned and casually walked out the room and made his way to the back to check on everyone.

When he entered the dressing room, he saw that all four of them had now changed into tracksuits and jeans and crowding around Royalty who seemed a bit better. As he looked around the room to all the different faces, he knew he had a decision to make.

"Where are they?" Cindy asked angrily, ready to have a piece of them herself. She was about to commit murder.

Huey looked her dead in her eyes. "Don't worry about them. They not going to hurt any of you again."

Ming swallowed, not knowing the answer she wanted to hear. "Did you kill them?"

"Damn fucking right we did! Can't fuck with the gang nigga." Riley shouted.

Huey sighed knowing this wasn't going to be easy to say but it had to be done.

"You need to leave."

Everyone turned to him with confusion on their face.

Jazmine walked up to him. "Huey. What are you talking about?"

He took a deep breath trying his best to ignore the sweet strawberry smell radiating off her body.

"You can't stay here. All four of you need to leave Chicago tonight. Go back to where you lived, Miami, Jamaica, I don't care. You just need to leave tonight. We fucked up and dragged you into this shit now you're getting hurt. I can't have that shit on my conscience. I already fucked up one person's life, I can't do that to you."

They all looked at him but he couldn't look at any of them and turned his head away.

Jazmine walked up to him. "It's not your fault Huey. We will be fine-" She reached out to touch his face but Huey grabbed it and held onto it, knowing this was the last time he would be able to hold her.

"Jazmine. Listen to what I am saying. You, Ming, Cindy and Royalty, cannot be here. Remember that bag of drugs I dropped off? Yeah, that's the fucking Russians. They were two of them. They have pictures of you four with us and know we are close which is why as long as you associate with us, there will always be a target on you and I can't live with that and I know they feel the same." Huey paused and looked up to his brothers. Every single one of their faces read the same thing.

Ming turned to Hiro with her arms crossed. "Hiro."

Hiro took one look into her deep brown eyes but couldn't look at the sadness in them so lowered his head.

"Caesar." Cindy's blue eyes were icier than ever.

"I'm sorry." Was all he could say.

Next was Royalty who grabbed onto Riley's face to force him to look into her soul.

"Riley Escobar Freeman."

Hearing his full name made it harder for him because he knew she was hurt.

"You know I will always have love for you baby." He said emotionally. Like his brother, he pulled her hand away from his face and put it in her lap.

The room was silent but Huey wanted to get them out of there as quickly as possible. He needed to get the home to pack their bags and send them straight to the airport. Obviously, he will supply them with money.

"Go to the car. We will take you home so you can pack what you need and take you to the airport."

They didn't even nod and made their way straight outside, not even giving a second glance to the men they were forced to leave behind.

"Man, this some ol bullshit!" Riley shouted once they were gone.

"We can never catch a break can we..." Caesar sighed.

Hiro patted his friend on the back. "The curse of the life we live."

Huey didn't want to dwell on it any longer. "Let's just get this over with."

* * *

The girls walked outside somber at the thought of having to leave just to stay alive. It made them wonder if they were being stupid thinking that they could be with gang members. Maybe they were, like every other girl that got caught up and was either dead or locked up. They could be one of them too.

Jazmine sniffed. "Where we going to go now?"

"I guess it's time we go back home." Cindy sighed.

"We haven't been back in years, let alone talk to anyone there." Royalty said.

"What choice do we have?" Ming aggressively wiped away her tears that she cursed for dropping.

They couldn't even continue their conversation about their next steps because a white van had pulled up out of nowhere with more cars. The dancers stopped in their track as they saw them all coming their way.

"Huey!"

"Riley!"

"Hiro!"

"Caesar!"

They all screamed.

Hearing their names, all four sprinted out of the club to automatically have to be dodging bullets.

"What the fuck man?!" Riley shouted. They had to duck under the few things in the parking lot to take cover.

"Get off me!" Cindy kicked and screamed as she was grabbed from behind but that was short lived as a cloth covered her mouth and her head dropped low.

"Cin-" Ming tried to call out but they got her too.

"Fuck!" Hiro shouted as he saw his girl getting grabbed. He jumped up and began shooting in their direction hoping he would drop her but they had already thrown her into the van.

"We're out numbered!" Caesar shouted over the non-stop gun fire.

"I don't give a fuck!" Riley said before shooting one in their chest.

Huey, not thinking straight and obviously angry, ran out from his spot and began firing at all different direction. It was helpful because he manged to get three people but another had gotten him, sending two bullets into his body. His body dropped to the hard floor all while Jazmine watched him go down.

"Noooooo!" She screamed. As she was about to run after him, two men grabbed her and Royalty.

"Ahhhh!" Royalty bawled as the man unknowingly put pressure on her wound but she didn't have much time to think about it because she got a sniff of the special chemical that put her to sleep.

"Don't touch me!" Jazmine clawed at the kidnapper's hands but he didn't budge. Instead, his friend that just had Royalty came over and covered her mouth with the drugged cloth. Within a few seconds, she was out for the count and thrown into the van with her friends.

"Fuck!" Hiro gritted his teeth as a bullet grazed his leg but he didn't stop fighting.

"Let's move!" One of them shouted in Russian. The ones that heard ran to get back into their cars while the last few were holding back the four top members of The Panthers as best they could.

Suddenly, Raven popped up and jumped on the one who grabbed Jazmine, back. They began struggling as he did his best to throw her off him but she was not letting go. She managed to get her hands around his neck and turned it into a sickening snap, breaking his neck. His body dropped to the ground with her still on his back. Raven was about to get up to fight someone else when she was pistol whipped across the head. Just as she was about to fall, the one who pistol whipped her picked up her body and jumped into the back of the van with her.

"We gotta extra one boys!" He called out to the two sitting in the front as they laughed and sped away from the scene. He looked at the five unconscious girls and smirked. They were about to win this war. Their boss would be pleased.

"Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" Riley was frustrated as he watches the van continue to drive away even after he tried shooting it.

"They got Raven too!" Caesar let out an irritated groan. "Hiro you good man?" He asked as he saw Hiro limp over.

"I'm straight. Just a graze."

"Man fuck this- Huey!" Riley shouted but then remembered seeing his brother dropped to the ground and not get back up. "Ah shit! Huey!"

He ran over to where he saw him fall and there he was trying to get up as blood flowed out his wound.

"Come on man you good." Riley reached down to help his brother.

As he was pulled up to his feet, he let out a moan of pain but did his best to hold it down.

"Where... Jazmine?" He breathed out.

Caesar dreaded what he was going to say next. "They got them bro. Raven too. We need to get you stitched up and you Hiro."

Huey didn't have time to argue because he was losing the fight to stay awake.

He was going to be very pissed when he woke up.

* * *

**Ahhh a lot of things happened in this chapter. Nice and long for you all so I want you to review on evverything lool. As always, thank you for those who have been review, much appreciated.**

**To the Guest who said the park scene sounded like another story. Similar maybe but different. It's not as if I purposely copied it (even though I didn't) so I have no idea what you are talking about. Shade? I think so. Anywho, thanks for reading anyway.**

**Guest (Honestly): Trust me, this was never going to be a simple love story type of thing. As you said, he is a gang leader and being stupid so here are some consquences. After today, a lot of things will change, just gotta wait and see. Thank you for everything you said because trust me I did take it into account when writing this one which helped the flow of this chapter better (in my opinion). I am look forward to what you have to say next.**

**Not just looking forward to one review, I am looking forward to all. Next chapter may take a bit longer because I am going to much more busy but I will try. Can't leave you on that cliff hanger for to long. R&R.**

**Until Next Time**

**-TBG**


	24. Chapter 24: Reminiscing The Past

**First thing first, RIP John Witherspoon. One of the greatest and funniest of all time. The voice that gave us grandad. Could never imagine anyone who could voice him like how John Witherspoon did. As talks of a reboot, I hope whoever takes the voice of grandad does him justice.**

* * *

All four eventually made it home in record time. They had called Alex to tell him they need to be stitched up and he was already at the infirmary waiting for them to get there. Huey still hadn't woken up but Alex reassured them that he was probably tired and needed his rest, leaving the three to discuss the recent events.

"Man what the fuck?! How can some shit like that happen? We gotta kill all the motherfuckers that crossed us I don't give a flying fuck! I want my girl and I want her back now." Riley exclaimed his frustration.

They were currently gathering at Hiro's home as they took the time to collect their thoughts over the stressful day.

"I know how you feel but remember they ain't our girls no more. Once we get them, they can no longer be around us." You could hear the dread in Hiro's voice as he didn't even want to say it himself because it just made it all too real.

"We in some shit now. Some deep deep shit." Caesar rubbed his hands over his face.

"Fuck I need a drink." Riley stood up and walked over to Hiro's bar and grabbed the bottle of brown liquor. Within seconds, he managed to down 3 shots.

Caesar stood up to go over to the younger male and tried to grab the bottle out his hand but Riley pulled the bottle away. "Slow down Reezy. We need to be sharp and shit, can't have you passed out on us."

"Fuck that. I need this shit." Riley slowly walked backwards while drinking more alcohol and put his middle finger up.

"You don't need to be on MC like that." Hiro said from his spot on the couch. His leg was resting on the coffee table and he hoped it healed enough so he could help get the girls when the time came.

"Nah it's cool HO. He just upset. Is all."

"Man fuck upset, nigga I'm pissed! Who they think they is coming to our shit, shooting at us and taking our girls?! Nah nah nah. We killing every one of them. Straight facts." Riley began to pace up and down in front of them.

"Word bro. We just waiting for Ghost ass to wake up." Hiro sighed.

"That's another thing. Why his ass taking so long to wake the fuck up? Damn, he acting like he ain't been shot before."

They sat there in silent. It was true. They all had been stabbed and/or shot at least once. It was nothing they were proud of but it is what it is. They knew the pain of those injuries they have inflicted on people but that story is for another time.

"Whatever man. We need to get rest to have a clear mind so we sharp when we get them." Caesar sighed for the millionth time tonight.

"How am I meant to sleep when they with the fucking Russians doing who knows what with them?" Riley said with frustration.

"I know Reezy and I don't want to be thinking like that. I just said it so you all know I told your asses to rest because if you ain't on point when we leave, you know Ghost gonna have your neck."

Caesar found his spot on his couch and closed his eyes with Hiro following suit. Riley was vexed but knew he should too plus, the liquor was making his feel extra sleepy today. He put the now empty bottle of Hennessy on the table he was about to rest his feet on and dozed off into a restless sleep. They all were restless. They felt like shit sleeping while Raven, Jazmine, Cindy, Royalty and Ming were going through who knows what. They just prayed that they were kept from any more harm. They couldn't think the way their minds tried to drift to. They just couldn't.

* * *

Somewhere off in an unknown location, the five women were laying on a hard floor. The room was dead silent besides from their breathing after being knocked out. The room was only lit with 1 light bulb which was enough to see how empty the room was.

The blonde in the group began to stir. The chemicals that she ingested were beginning to ware off.

"Ugh... what the..." She groaned as she slowly sat up and put her hands on her head. She opened her crystal blue eyes and tried not to look directly into the one light in the room. "What happened...?" She whispered to herself but that's when she remembered her friends. "Oh shit!"

Cindy looked around her and saw Raven, Jazmine, Royalty and Ming all lying down around her.

"Hey. Ming. Ming wake up." Cindy whispered as she gently shook her.

Ming could hear her name being called and let out a moan as she slowly woke up.

"Cindy?" She looked up at her friend who's eyes began to water.

"Thank fuck you're ok." Cindy let out a sigh before turning to her other friends to wake them up. "Come on wake up." She shook Royalty and Jazmine awake with the help of Ming in which they woke up in the same state they were in.

"Where are we?" Jazmine groaned as she rubbed her hands over her face.

"I don't know but we need to get out of here." Ming answered her as she went to stand up to try and find a way out.

Jazmine looked down and saw Raven laid out on the floor in front of them.

"Wait, when did they get Raven? I don't remember seeing her outside." Jazmine said as she crawled over to her.

"Bare shit was happening, it was crazy out there." Cindy sighed.

Jazmine held Raven's soft cheeks in her hands before lightly tapping them.

"Raven. Raven come on."

Raven squinted her eyes and moaned as she began to feel the pain in the back of her head.

"Fuck my head is killing me." She hissed as she put her hand to her head. That's when she felt a wet patch and moved it to in front of her face. "For fuck sake."

Jazmine's eyes grew wide as she saw the blood on her fingers.

"Oh my gosh! What happened to you?" She asked with genuine concern.

"I came to save you and managed to snap one of their necks but another one of them bastards pistol whipped me. Ugh. When I get my hands on them I will kill them!"

"For now, I just wanna get the fuck out of here. I best not get no fucking infection." Royalty said annoyingly as she looked down at her stained t-shirt. "Does anyone remember anything?" They all shook their heads. "This some bullshit."

"Are we going to die here?" Jazmine began to tear up.

Raven shook her head but stopped when she remembered her head injury. "No. Trust me, Huey will find us."

"Not to be rude but we haven't been the best of friends since we have met. How can we trust you?" Cindy pointed out.

Raven squinted her eyes wondering how she could think of her being nice when they were all in the same situation.

"Listen. I didn't have to risk my life for you motherfuckers but I did because if I came, I knew they would be able to find me."

"How?"

Raven was about to explain but she heard footsteps.

"That story is for another time." Her brown eyes hardened as she did her best to stand on her two feet ready to attack when the person entered.

The door slowly opened and as Raven went to jump the person, a gun was what she was met with first.

"I wouldn't do that if I was you." The person holding the gun said with amusement.

Raven face went red with anger and frustration but backed down.

"Ain't you a good little girl." He chuckled. That's when he walked into the room with 2 male and 2 females behind him. He was about an inch taller than Huey (if he didn't have the afro), dark brown hair and even darker eyes with a deep scar that stretched from his ear to mouth.

"You really brought back up for us little girls?" Raven asked sarcastically which just made him laugh again.

"Well from what I heard, you little missy, managed to snap the neck of one of my strongest men and your friends put up quite a fight. Got some deep scratches on them, hopefully they don't catch anything from you." The girls scoffed while the man and his people laughed. "Oh wait. Where are my manners?" He grinned hard as he stepped more into the room and towered over the kidnapped women. "My name is Vladimir. Leader of the Russians. And your little boyfriends owe me some shit. They stole my money and my cocaine so I am going to collect some of my payment by cutting up your cute, sexy bodies and sending them to the pathetic Panthers everyday until I get my fucking money!" He stopped himself from blowing up and calmed down while taking no notice to the frightened faces of the one he stole. "I know I know. It's not your fault but it just had to be done. Now with this fire cracker here, it gives them more time to get my shit together because I have more body parts to send." He smirked as he tapped Raven on her nose.

Just as she was about to jump on him, the two men behind Vladimir grabbed her arms. She was too busy fighting to realise one of the women had stepped up too.

"This is for my brother." She smirked before sliding on a brass knuckle. She went to strike her face but Vladimir stopped her.

"Not just yet Natasha. I don't want any of their faces touched. I like to have a nice view while I'm fucking."

Hearing this made Jazmine burst out in tears, Ming and Royalty tear up while Cindy just looked shocked.

Natasha rolled her dull eyes before getting back in her stance. She then began to send strong blows to Raven's ribs causing her to become short of breath and cough.

The room was filled with crying, powerful blows and Raven's painful coughing.

Vladimir grew bored and yawned. "Alright alright Natasha. She's had enough for now. Goodbye ladies." He turned and walked out casually while the two men holding Raven threw her on the floor and stepped over her as if she was nothing. "Don't even try and escape, it's useless!" They heard the evil man laugh before the door slammed shut and locked them in the room once again.

"We really going to die here..." Ming whispered to herself.

Raven dragged herself over to the wall to support her in sitting up. "No... we are not... stop... thinking... like that." She breathed out. She knew her ribs were bruised. The pain she was feeling was crazy but she wasn't going to let that stop her from trying to fight if she needed to. She didn't get down that easily.

"Its kinda hard not think like that after what he said." Royalty frowned.

After 10 minutes of silence, Jazmine spoke up.

"Cindy you remember when we first met?"

Cindy looked up for the first time in a long time and gave her green eyed friend a light smile, she was glad for this distraction from her dark thoughts.

"Of course I do. Its the day I met my sister."

* * *

_19 years ago_

_6 year old Jazmine had just started 1__st__ grade and was nervous. She didn't know anyone and for some reason, the other kids kept looking at her like she was crazy. Being the cheery, happy child, she was, she was oblivious to it all._

_It was lunch time and Jazmine was trying to look for people to play with. It had a been a week and no luck. The young girl saw a group of other girls who were laughing and playing hand games. Jazmine knew how to play all the games as she would do it with her cousins and skipped right over there with a big smile._

"_Hi! I'm Jazmine! Can I join?" She asked._

_The group of 5 1__st__ graders looked at her and laughed making Jazmine feel embarrassed and cheeks to turn red but she didn't let that stop her._

"_I saw you doing hand games and I know how to do them too because I would play with my cousins and I can show you new ones and there are 5 of you and if I joined that makes 6 and we can-" She began to rant but was cut off by a brunette._

"_You talk too much. We don't want to play with someone like you." She looked Jazmine up and down in disgust._

_Jazmine didn't understand. "Why?"_

_The next friend rolled her eyes. "Just look at you and your ugly hair. The colour is ugly and it looks ugly while mine is straight and beautiful." She showed of her short blonde hair as Jazmine stared at it._

_This was not the last Jazmine would hear these comments._

"_Bu- but I get it from my daddy..." She frowned as she lightly touched her afro puff._

"_Boohoo-"_

"_Ay yo Ella!" The group turned to see another first grader stomping over. She had deep blue eyes and straight blonde hair pulled into a high ponytail and her attire screamed tomboy._

"_Cynthia." Ella said with disgust._

_The new comer eyebrows screwed immediately._

"_It's like you are asking to be slapped. Let's not repeat Kindergarten shall we." The girl who Jazmine guessed name was Cynthia, stepped up to Ella and balled up her fist while staring her down. Jazmine could see that Ella was threatened by the blonde by the way she was quiet but she put on a fake face._

"_Whatever. Let's get out of here." With that, the group of five girls walked away leaving the two behind._

_Jazmine was on the verge of tears but did her best to hold it down._

"_Thank you Cynthi-"_

"_Please. Don't call me that." She cringed at the sound of her full name._

_Jazmine was shocked and began to panic. "Oh my gosh! I am so sorry, I didn't mean to offended you. I am so so sorry. I just assumed-"_

"_Damn girl relax, it's cool. Names Cindy." She gave Jazmine a cheesy smile._

"_Jazmine." Jazmine grinned back. "Does that mean we're friends now?"_

_Cindy shrugged. "I guess. I mean no offence but it looks like you need one and I just started today since I just came back from France with my parents."_

_Jazmine lit up. "I always wanted to go France!" She said completely ignoring the first part of Cindy's sentence which made her laugh._

"_This is going to be a crazy first grade."_

* * *

Present day

"You really let people talk to you like that?" Raven asked with a raised eyebrow.

Jazmine shrugged. "I didn't understand what being mixed was. My parents ignored it for years."

"Damn that's sad." Raven shook her head.

"Then not long after, Ming came along." Cindy smirked as she looked at her friend, redirecting back to the memories.

* * *

_12 years ago_

_13 year old Ming was new to the school which she hated. She hated moving. This was her 5__th__ school in 3 years. Her parents promised it was the last move._

_She sighed as she sat in the office. The principle told her that someone was going to come and show her around the school. A girl by the name of Jazmine. She didn't think much of it and just wanted to get to her lesson so the day could go quicker._

_Ming didn't have time to think of anything else because a bubbly girl walked into the office._

"_Hi Miss Barry! I am here for the new student!"_

_Ming wasn't sure how she felt about the girl. Firstly, she didn't expect someone of a minority since all she has seen since she had moved was white people so seeing another minority was refreshing. It also made her wonder if the principle did it on purpose to make her feel more comfortable. They probably did._

"_She's right there Jazmine, have fun." The receptionist smiled as she pointed to where Ming was sitting._

_Jazmine skipped over and Ming stood._

"_Hello, my name is Jazmine Dubois and I will be your guide today." She smiled which even made Ming smile a little._

"_Ming Long-Dou."_

"_That's a nice name. Where are you from?" Jazmine asked as they walked through the hallways._

"_I was born in China and moved to America when I was 7. Me and my parents moved around Florida for a while but they didn't like it so when their job moved us here, they were very happy about." She shrugged._

_Jazmine gasped. "China? That's so cool. I wanna go there one day."_

"_It is pretty nice."_

"_So what do you do for fun?" Jazmine asked as they continued their tour._

"_I play kickball, a little basketball, I did little gymnasti-"_

_Jazmine gasped which made Ming stop and look at her with wide eyes. "You should join my gymnastic class! We start next week every Monday and Wednesday. I want to do cheerleading in high school and become captain so I go there. My best friend, Cindy, plays basketball and she is really good but her mom is making her come gymnastics with me so you should join." Jazmine stopped and had a large smile on her face._

_Ming stopped and turned to the girl, shocked at how excited she was._

"_How are you so hyper?"_

"_Because I hate being down but forget about that, you wanna join?" Jazmine's eyes grew wide with hope making Ming sigh._

"_Ok fine. I will tell my parents." Jazmine jumped, clapped and shrieked in excitement._

_Ming shook her head. 'I hope I don't regret this...'_

_With that Jazmine continued the tour, happy knowing she had gained another friend._

* * *

Present day

"And just like that you became friends?" Raven questioned. Since she was the only one that didn't know about their relationship, she had questions and it also stopped her thinking about her messed up ribs.

"Yup! It took Ming and Cindy a few days of sizing each other up before they realised they are the same person in a different race." Jazmine laughed as she saw them both roll their eyes.

"So, how did Royalty get into the mix? Isn't she a year younger or something?"

"Two. I joined the same gymnastic club." Royalty said before letting Jazmine tell the story.

* * *

_12 years ago_

"_I can't believe I am here." Cindy crossed her arms as she walked into the gymnastic centre._

_It was the girls first lesson and Cindy was far from happy while Ming was neutral and Jazmine was jumping off the walls._

"_Cheer up Cindy, you're already flexible enough." Ming lightly shoved her._

_After 3 days of wondering who was going to be the 'tough girl' in the new group, they both gave up trying to outdo the other one when they realised, they didn't have to be one type of friend in the friendship group. They had more in common than they thought. Jazmine was glad because she didn't like tension. It allowed room for them all to begin a friendship that would continue for years._

"_No I'm not." She frowned._

_Jazmine crossed her own arms now._

"_Cindy don't act like we wasn't doing flips and splits before we came here."_

_Cindy threw her head back and looked up to the sky, knowing her friends were right. "Let's just get this over with."_

_The three teens walked into the main room and saw some other girls and a couple of boys, sitting and talking to each about who knows what. Jazmine diverted her eyes to a girl that was just about younger than them, sitting on the floor by herself. She didn't just stand out because she was sitting on her own, she stood out because she was the only black person in the class._

"_Hey Cin, Ming. Look at the girl sitting on her own." Jazmine nodded in her direction. Jazmine thought she looked adorable._

"_Jazzy. Are you really going to bring in everyone you see?" Cindy asked as they walked towards the mats._

_Jazmine was about to reply but the instructor came in and began to teach the class._

"_Alright, we are going to do some floor work today to kick things off. Royalty, would you like to go first?" After 20 minutes of stretching and simple exercises, they were moving onto something different. Jazmine didn't have the chance to talk to the girl who she now found out name was Royalty._

_Royalty stepped to the corner of the floor and took a deep breath. Jazmine, Ming and Cindy could hear the whispered from the other teens pointing and laughing at her for some strange reason that made them to become very annoyed._

"_I'm going to drag a bitch across the floor today." Cindy screwed her eyebrows together in annoyance. As much as Cindy would deny, she was really a softy and would defend anyone that wasn't being treated fairly. Since she met Jazmine, less and less people would try and make fun of her for her mixed heritage because Cindy was there ready to jump anyone who tried._

"_I bet she is terrible." A boy said which made the group of people around him laugh._

_Royalty took another deep breath in order to block out the negativity around her before running and flipping straight into a front flip and cartwheels which shut everyone up. The next minute was Royalty showing off her ability with ease._

"_Everyone, give a round of applause for Royalty. That was excellent, I can't wait to see more of what you can do." Everyone clapped but it was more scattered in annoyance at the praise._

"_She is so damn good." Ming said._

"_Now I want you to get into groups of four. You will have to choose an equipment and create a routine and present it on Wednesday. The winners will get a prize." Hearing the end made everyone get excited and run into their groups. What Cindy and Ming didn't expect was Jazmine to run off and seconds later came back with a wide-eyed Royalty._

_Jazmine stopped and breathed. "Hi! I am Jazmine, this is Cindy and Ming and we think you are so good."_

"_Tank you." Royalty said with a raised eyebrow._

"_I like your accent. Where you from?"_

"_Jamaica. Been in America for 6 months."_

_Ming nodded. "Cool. I moved from China."_

"_How old are you?" Cindy asked as she looked at the shorter girl._

"_11."_

"_Damn you a little ass baby."_

_Royalty's face went straight. "Mi maybe likkle bit but mi still box anyone down."_

_Hearing the change in her voice shocked the three but they were impressed. She didn't let anyone intimidate her and that was something they could all respect._

"_How did you get into the class if it is 12 plus?" Ming asked._

"_I'm just that good." Royalty smirked making them laugh._

_Jazmine pulled them into a group hug which made all the eyes to grow wide._

"_This could be the start of something new."_

_They looked at her strangely._

"_Did- did your ass just quote High School Musical?" Ming questioned._

"_And what if I did?" She said defensively._

_They all just laughed before going into what they should do to win the competition. Royalty was glad she didn't have to put much effect in finding girls that would take her in without a care in the world and she was very happy about it. Jazmine, Ming and Cindy didn't know that they now had completed their friendship group that would still be solid over 10 years later._

* * *

Present day

"So, you all just became friends just like that? That easy? Damn, y'all females weird." Raven shook her head.

Royalty shrugged. "I just came to the country; I didn't have much options of friends."

Jazmine looked fake hurt. "Don't act like you wasn't my child. You still are my baby."

"Whatever girl. So since you know how we met, how did you meet those niggas?" Royalty asked Raven who was now lying down.

They didn't know how long they would be stuck here so they might as well get as comfortable as they could even if it was a struggle.

"I knew Huey from the womb. Riley from when he was in the womb. Caesar and Hiro through Huey who met each other during school when they were 8 but didn't really interact until they joined the same dojo. I hung out with the boys, didn't fuck with the girls."

"Why not?" Ming asked even though it was understandable. Girls can be bitches.

"They are fake motherfuckers. Can't trust any of them hoes. Nearly got all of us killed. Well, managed to get one killed." Raven sighed as she thought back to her past. Her childhood was never as simple as the other girls.

Jazmine was now intrigued. "What happened?"

Raven sighed once again as she had to go deep into a memory she hopped to forget.

"While you were all making friends, Huey was fighting for his life. We had a friend... his name was Cairo..."

* * *

_12 years ago_

"_Come on Huey, you take so fucking long." Cairo complained as he waited for his friend. They were going to play a game of basketball but Huey for some reason was taking too long._

"_Nigga relax you know the only reason I am coming is because I have to drag Riley." 13-year-old Huey rolled his eyes as he stepped out of his childhood home with a basketball in his hand._

_Huey and Cairo had become friends through Raven when they were 7 who she met in the mall when they accidentally ran into each other when they both coincidentally lost their mothers. The mothers bonded and exchanged numbers and since then, a friendship formed and grew bigger when Hiro and Caesar joined._

"_We both know he way better than you anyway. Maybe I should have dragged his ass instead." Cairo teased._

_Riley came out in a white vest and some basketball shorts laughing. "See even your nigga know I am a better baller than you. I don't know why you didn't ask me to come first."_

_Huey shook his head. "I am going back inside-" He turned to walk back into the house but Cairo pulled him onto the pavement and began dragging him towards the courts._

"_Fuck you ain't. I waited too long for you to just turn back. We going." He finally let Huey walk on his own once they got far enough from the door. "Plus, you have the ball since I left mine at home."_

"_You could always go back and get it." Huey shrugged._

_Cairo kissed his teeth. "And have my ass be stuck in the house? Nah, I'll pass. You know my mama been strict lately since what happened to my cousin." He told his friend seriously. Cairo's older cousin had been shot in a drive by a month ago and his mother had been on edge about him going out especially knowing he hung out with Huey and Riley Freeman who were well know sons of a gang member._

_They reached the courts and quickly got a hoop before anyone could take it as they knew more people would come around this time. It wasn't long before Caesar, Hiro, Raven and her little sister Robyn, came to join._

"_Raven, why the fuck you bring your useless ass sister if she is just gonna sit on her ass the whole time?" Riley cussed as he pointed to her on the floor. She heard this and flipped off the fellow 11-year-old._

"_First of all, don't talk to my sister like that. I will fuck you up nigga. Second of all, my dad made her come." Raven rolled her eyes as she grabbed the ball out of Cairo's hand. As she bounced the ball and walked away, Cairo looked her up and down as she purposely swayed her developing hips knowing he was looking. For the past few weeks, the two had be flirting and it was only a matter of time before one made a move._

"_I know how that feels." Huey mumbled as he looked over at his younger brother._

"_I heard you nigga." Riley had gotten the ball from Raven and tried to throw it at Huey aggressively but he had good reflexes and caught it effortlessly. "Bitch ass nigga."_

"_Ay, everybody been talking about you and that Nicki girl." Caesar threw his arms around Huey. "I hear she be talking about you none stop in the girl's locker room."_

"_How do you know what girls talk about in the locker room?" Raven crossed her arms as they all gathered around to hear._

"_A nigga got sources." He winked at her making her roll her brown eyes. "Apparently, she gonna ask you out real soon."_

_Huey's straight face didn't waver. "And I will say no."_

_Everyone looked at him kind of shocked. The girl was undeniably pretty and quite smart so at least Huey would be able to hold a decent conversation with her. He was known to have little patients for people that couldn't hold a basic and reasonable conversation with him._

"_And why not?" Riley asked._

_Huey shrugged Caesar off. "Because I am not interested in her."_

"_I knew your ass was gay!" Riley's eyes grew wide._

_Huey went and punched his brother in the arm which made the group laugh. "I am not gay. I just don't find her interesting."_

"_I heard she was crazy." Raven interjected._

_Riley shook his head. "Your ass just jealous."_

"_Of what nigga?"_

"_I don't know. That she pretty and you an ugly motherfucker." He laughed. No one understood why the two could never really get along. It has been like that since he was 1. He was at least nicer to her sister Robyn but they didn't really hang out like that for him to want to pick on her as much as he did Raven._

"_I'm not even going to lie, she is fine as hell. If you don't want her, I will try." Hiro smirked as he nodded to Caesar who nodded back._

"_Have her. I don't want her." Huey shrugged. "Now, can we go back to-"_

"_Huuuuueeeyyy! Huueeeyyy!"_

"_Speak of the devil and she shall come." Hiro laughed as he saw Nicki running over as her group of friends slowly followed behind._

"_Awe, Huey little girlfriend is here." Cairo teased._

"_Shut your ass up Cairo." Huey rolled his eyes before slowly walking up to Nicki who was grinning wide in front of him._

"_Hey!"_

"_Hi." He greeted back with less enthusiasm causing his friends to snicker behind him._

_Nicki looked over his shoulder and wanted to glare at them but kept the same smiling face._

"_So, there's this new movie coming out and I was wondering if you would take me and we can call it a date."_

"_No."_

_Her smile was slapped off her face._

"_What? What do you mean no?"_

_Huey sighed, knowing this was going to be harder than it seemed. Maybe Raven was right, she seemed crazy._

"_I don't like you like that." He shrugged. "I ain't looking for no girl right now."_

_Nicki looked him dead in his red eyes and balled up her fists._

"_That's bullshit. Everyone is looking for a relationship Huey! Why don't you want me? Am I ugly?"_

_Huey raised an eyebrow, wondering where this conversation was going._

"_No-"_

"_Then why don't you-"_

"_Nicki." He cut her off firmly. "Just stop this before you embarrass yourself any further."_

_Nicki looked behind him once again and saw his group of friends pretend as if they were not listening but they were. They were just trying not to burst out in laughter._

_She slowly nodded her head and gave him a sinister smile as the gears in her head began to turn._

"_That was a big mistake Huey. I will see you soon." She reached forward, kissed his cheek and skipped away. She didn't let the smile drop from her face as she made her way to contact a very special person._

_Huey felt the tingling of his cheek where she kissed him._

'_What the fuck was that?' He thought. He shook his head and turned to see his friends shocked look._

"_What?"_

"_If I wasn't mistaken, you rejected her and she kissed you. How does that work? What does Huey have that I don't?" Caesar said dramatically._

"_Caes. You got about 5 girls on you right now. I don't think you need help." Cairo laughed as Caesar nodded in agreement._

_Huey sighed at his weird friends as he still thought back to Nicki walking away. She didn't seem right. Something seemed... off but he could put his finger on it. "Let's just forget about that and play a game. New teams."_

_Another hour went by and it was time to go home since the street lights were about to come on. As they walked down the street, they stopped as it was coming up to where Caesar, Hiro, Raven and Robyn would turn home._

"_We will catch y'all later. We hanging at mine tomorrow?" Cairo asked as they all did their rounds of goodbyes._

"_For sure. We bringing our bikes this time." Caesar smiled._

"_Bet. Bet." He walked over to Raven and pulled her into a warm, strong hold. "I will see you tomorrow girl." He licked his lips as he stepped back making her giggle._

"_Boy you stupid."_

_Before they could continue their little moment, Riley jumped in._

"_Ew. Y'all gonna see each other tomorrow, relax you horny ass teens."_

"_Shut the fuck up Riley. When your balls drop then you can have a say in grown folks' business." Raven pushed him._

"_Damn Reezy. That shit must have hurt you." Robyn laughed._

_Riley smacked his lips. "That ain't shit. A nigga balls been dropped."_

_Huey pulled his brother by the arm. "You can bully him another time. We gotta go."_

_They all said bye once again and walked away._

_Cairo stopped. "Ay hold up, Robyn got my keys."_

"_Why she got them for?" Riley asked annoyed._

"_Because she was the only one with a bag nigga." Cairo rolled his eyes but turned around and called out. "Ay yo Rav-"_

_Everything from there was in slow motion._

_Raven and her group turned to see that Cairo was cut off because a group of hooded men ran up on Huey, Riley and Cairo with guns pulled out screaming at them._

"_Cairo!" Raven screamed and tried to run over to him._

_The two looked eyes with each other but next thing Raven knew, gun shots rang through the air and she was getting dragged to the floor._

_Hiro had grabbed Raven and Caesar grabbed Robyn and shield them with their own bodies from any bullets that were flying._

_Huey felt something sharp pierced his stomach and raised his hands to where he felt it. As he did, he felt the warm liquid of his blood flood between his fingers. He dropped to his knees, no longer able to stand before collapsing on his side. He could hear screaming and crying but the one sound that stood out was the sound of Cairo struggling for breath._

"_Hu..." He gasped._

_Huey looked over and saw Cairo's eyes widened as he looked deep into his maroon eyes but Huey felt paralysed and couldn't move to help his friend which would later scar him._

"_Man what the fuck is you doing?! We were only meant to scare them. Fuck! Their daddy gonna kill us, lets fucking go!" The leader of the group screamed as he looked at the scene before fleeing, leaving the young teenagers behind bloody and crying._

"_Fuck fuck fuck!" Riley began to tear up as he looked at the two fallen boys._

_Raven managed to throw Hiro off her and run to where Cairo was lying._

"_Cairo! Stay with us please!" She cried as she held onto his face._

"_You need to put pressure on the wound." She heard Hiro say from behind her and she immediately did while Caesar went to do it to Huey who was trying his best to stay awake._

"_Imma get dad." Riley announced before taking off to his house._

"_I'm going to get Cairo's mom." Robyn cried before speeding away towards his house._

_Raven looked over at Huey and saw his lips moving but couldn't hear what he was saying. She looked back at Cairo and saw a faint smile on his face._

"_How you still smiling at this time? I don't understand you." She managed to laugh through tears. Raven looked down at his vest that was covered in his blood but there wasn't much more leaking out since she had pressure on it but what made her own heart drop was feeling Cairo's heart stop. "No no no no no no no no no no no!" By the end of it she was bawling as she looked at Cairo's lifeless eyes looking up to the sky._

"_Cairo no!" She wept._

_Raven heard footsteps running towards her and only looked up when she heard two other female voices cry out._

"_My baby! They killed my baby!" Raven moved out the way as Cairo's mother came over and held onto her now dead son. The sight was depressing to see but not a foreign thing to see in these streets. There were even neighbours slowly coming out their homes to see what had happened outside. They all knew what happened, they just wanted to see who were the victims this time._

_Mackenzie was about to collapse on top of her own son but Christian stopped her._

"_Let me hold my son!" She screamed at him but he didn't care. He reached down at picked his oldest son up and already, he was getting blood on himself._

"_I am not letting him stay here. We need to fix him up now." He told her sternly and all she could do was nod at her husband._

_With that, Huey's parents took off with Riley following behind leaving everyone else behind no matter how much they didn't want to._

"_Why you let them take his life Lord? Why my son?!" Miss Jefferson shouted up to the sky in anger._

_Raven looked down at her friend and couldn't let the tears stop falling. He died. He died right there in her arms. His mother wasn't even the last person he saw or smiled at. It was her. She watched his soul leave his body and did nothing about it. She felt useless. Weak. Sick._

_Raven ran a few steps away before leaning forward and vomiting. Her body couldn't take it._

"_It's going to be ok sis. We going to get through this..." Robyn rubbed her older sisters back._

_Raven just shook her head before walking back over to Cairo's body, got on her knees and continued crying until she was physically dragged away._

_They were all broken._

* * *

Present day

There was not a dry eye in the room. Raven had to take breaks as she had to relive that moment.

"You know that is the first time I spoke about what happened that day in about 10 years." She admitted as she whipped away her tears.

"That's some fucked up shit." Cindy sniffed.

Raven nodded lightly. "That fucked me up."

"So what happened after that? What happened to Huey and who shot them? Did they get arrested?" Jazmine asked.

"Huey recovered but he became more... ruthless. Before when he would get into fights here and there, he would hold back. Mainly defended but after that day... he was on his way to become the skilled killer he is today." Hearing Huey being called a skilled killer made Jazmine blood run cold as she pictured him taking other people's lives. "It was a while before we saw him and he was even more silent than before. Even at Cairo's funeral. Complete silence. Not one word."

"How did everyone else take it?" Ming asked.

"As good as it could get when your friend gets shot and killed in front of you." She shrugged but saw their faces drop even lower and had to continue. "Sorry. Forgot you're not used to all this taking life shit." She sighed. "Word got around and it turns out the Nicki girl had told her older brother that Huey had hit her and tried to force himself on her so he was planning to rough him up good for a long time, enough that it would break Huey but instead his friend was trigger happy and shot them. Christian, their dad, rolled up with his brothers and killed Nicki's brother a week later. Nicki never looked our way again."

Royalty looked shocked. "You all went through that?" Raven nodded. "And here we were talking about meeting and having fun at gymnastics while you lost your friend. I'm sorry for calling you a bitch behind your back."

"It's not your fault, you didn't know. And you called me a bitch?" Raven questioned.

Royalty's smirked. "You were acting like one in the beginning."

"I could say the same for you four."

"Touche." Jazmine smiled but instantly dropped when she remembers where they were. "I just wanna get out of here."

"Don't we all." Cindy said.

Royalty frowned. "I didn't even get my army of children. I already had names picked out in my notes on my phone."

"Same. I will never see what little Jade looks like." Jazmine lowered her head.

"You were going to name your daughter Jade?" Raven questioned making Jazmine look up again.

She nodded. "Yeah. It's another gem that is green. If people didn't always say my eyes were emerald, I would have gone with jade as a stage name. I'm glad I didn't so I can name my daughter that."

"Damn you really thought it through."

Jazmine chuckled. "We always wanted kids, we would spend hours discussing names and finding out what they mean."

Raven looked at them. "As I said before. I have never had a female best friend so I never get them moments with the boys. We never even discussed things like that but I know they will be good fathers whenever that time comes. I guess you are lucky to have each other."

"And you're lucky you have people like Hiro, Caesar, Riley and Huey who would literally kill for you." Royalty paused and her mind went somewhere else. "I hope we get out of this shit soon." This was just the recurring thought they all seemed to be stuck on replay about.

"We will. Just gotta be patient." Raven breathed in trying her best to not cough out in pain.

"We can be anywhere in the fucking country right now. How you know they will find us?" Ming threw her arms up in defeat.

Raven smirked and tapped her neck, just under her ear, which had a tattoo of stars.

"What stars gotta do with getting us the fuck out of here?" Cindy asked annoyed.

"It's not the tattoo itself. It what's inside my neck that will get us out of here." Raven told them but that didn't help them at all. Raven sighed but began to tell them, hoping it would soothe their thoughts.

'I know you're looking over me Cairo. I know you won't let anything bad happen to me.' Raven thought quickly before going back into the conversation.

The five ladies all sat in the room lost about what to do next. They hated the feeling as if they had to wait to be rescued. They were no damsel in distress but it now seemed the best time to sit back and wait to be saved. They dreaded it but had nothing else to do. The unknown was behind the door and they didn't want to give Vladimir a reason to kill them before they have a fighting chance to get out of there.

If they got out of there.

* * *

**Again, Rest In Power John Witherspoon.**

**I know it has been so long since I have posted but I hope this can make up for it lool. Make sure you R&R about what you thought of the chapter and what might happen next.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	25. Chapter 25: Search

Huey slowly opened his eyes to try his best to adjust it to the bright room. It took him a few seconds but he managed to do it.

"Look who finally decided to join us."

Huey turned to see Alex sitting on his phone. He started to sit up to try and get out of the bed, ignoring the pain that was rushing through his body.

"Don't even bother trying to jump off the bed before you want to rip open your stitches." Alex told him as he gentle pushed him down.

Huey stopped fighting and laid his head back down. As he did, the last things he remembered flooded his memory and his eyes flung open.

"Jazmine!" He shouted and tried to jump up again but Alex beat him to it.

"Sit your ass down Ghost. You just got shot in your shoulder and side."

Huey moved his shoulder and felt pain all through his arm.

"You got lucky that the one on your side only got the skin, it could have been a lot worse. I had to take the one in your shoulder out since it didn't pass through." Alex explained to him.

"How are the rest?" Huey asked with his eyes squeezed shut.

"I patched up HO. It was easy since the bullet didn't do a lot of damage to his leg. The other two are fine."

Huey groaned. "I fucked up. I fucked everything and I fucked up bad. I don't deserve none of the shit I have. Within the space of a month I fucked us all over. You all deserve better."

"You're fucking right." Alex agreed making Huey open his eyes and look at the light skin doctor. "You think I was gonna cuddle your ass? Hell no nigga. You know everyone been saying you haven't been making any moves since that last robbery, they are growing impatient and will go off and do their own shit. What happened to the Ghost that would kill someone in a matter of seconds with his bare hands? That's the leader we want. Not some bitch ass nigga running around following some light bright stripper." Huey glared at him when he mentioned Jazmine. "I ain't even lying. Now, I hear they kidnapped her, her friends and Raven. So what are gonna do about it?" Alex crossed his arms as he looked at his injured boss.

"What time is it?"

"Coming up to 3pm." Alex answered which caused Huey to be shocked.

"Why the fuck didn't you wake me? It's been nearly 12 hours since that bastard has had them. You know he has a reputation of treating women like shit." Huey stood up angrily, ignoring all the pain in his body telling him to sit his ass back down.

"Because you needed rest. You all did. Remember I'm still a doctor." He raised an eyebrow as Huey slowly slide off the bed.

"Whatever. I have some shit to handle." With that, Huey left Alex shaking his head and made his way upstairs. He didn't know where everyone was so he decided to start with his cousin's house. He knocked and waited.

The door swung open and there his identical twin cousin was with concern written all over their face.

"Huey! Glad you ok cuz." Dante said relieved as he pulled him into a hug.

"Bullet wound." Was all Huey said to get him off him.

"My bad."

From the side, Huey heard light footsteps and saw a girl with long box braids. She looked up and gasped.

"Hwey!"

"Hey Coco." He patted her back as she hugged his legs. She stepped back pointed to his bloody shirt.

"Hwey hurt?" She frowned.

Huey shook his head. "Fake. Riley poured Kool-Aid on me." He told her.

The look his cousins were giving him just said that she was too smart to believe that.

"Ok Hwey." She rolled her eyes before walking to the fridge to get some juice.

"I need a favour but first..." Huey trailed off as he looked at Coco innocently sipping on her juice box.

Dante sighed as he understood what he meant and walked over to his daughter. "Hey baby. I'm going to need to go to your room and pack an overnight bag then put on a movie while daddy, uncle Dem and Huey have a grown-up talk."

"Where I going?" She pouted.

"Going to stay at grandad's house. You like staying with grandad don't you." He told her in a parental tone.

Huey was always shocked at how much he could change when it came to his daughter.

"Imma call the rest." Demetrius said as he pulled out his phone to call who Huey guessed, Riley.

"I guess." She shrugged as she didn't really feel like going tonight but knew she didn't have much of a choice.

"Good girl, now go on." He gave her a kiss on the forehead before directing her towards her room. Once they heard the sounds of whatever film she was watching turn on, they all got serious.

"So who we fucking up Ghost? Just say where and when and we down." Dante said seriously.

"Yeah no one can fuck with my family." Demetrius knotted his eyebrows together.

"I guess you heard then." Huey said in defeat as he walked over to the fridge to get some water for his very dry throat.

"Of course. Got told not long after you arrived here. We been itching, waiting for you to wake up to find out what's the next move."

Before Huey could reply there was a knock at the door and Hiro, Caesar and Riley piled into the room.

"Nigga." Riley nodded towards his brother who nodded back.

"Glad you ain't dead." Hiro smirked.

"I could say the same to you." Huey pointed to his slight limp.

"Takes more than that to take me out bro."

"As much as I love reunions, we need to cut to the chase and get them girls back." Caesar said seriously.

Everyone turned towards Huey and for some reason, he was stuck. He didn't know what to say or what to do. This was a new feeling for him.

"Uh..." Huey opened his mouth but nothing came out which caused everyone's face to drop.

Riley was the first to speak up. "Nigga what you mean 'uh'? What's the motherfucking move nigga?!" Riley stepped up to him angrily.

"Ay relax cuz." Dante walked up to the brothers staring each other down.

"Nah nah. Fuck being relaxed. We already did that. Tell us Ghost. What's next nigga?" Riley spat out.

"Yo Reezy you need to step back a bit." Caesar stepped in.

"MC. We don't have time for no dumb shit. How he supposed to lead a whole fucking gang and he just sitting there like a dickhead?!" Riley cussed.

"You know what Reezy." Huey walked up to his brother so they were toe to toe. Huey was only an inch taller so they were pretty much eye to eye. "I'm really tired of your fucking lip you spoiled little brat. All you do is complain, grow the fuck up. We're not 16 no more! You can't be fake gangster and run around guns blazing. This needs logically thinking which is why I am the leader of the gang and not you." The air was tense but no one stepped up knowing Huey has been waiting to get this off his chest. Huey stepped back and now turned his attention to the room. "Now. Let's get to the warehouse. I have some people to address." With that, Huey stormed out the room with Riley glaring daggers behind him.

"Well fuck you too gay ass nigga!" Riley shouted out, hoping his brother would hear.

Dante shook his head.

"What?"

"Your bro just got shot and you're just gonna shout at him knowing he's hurt and already pissed at his mistakes. That's low even for you Reezy."

"Maybe if he didn't get caught up with-" Riley tried to defend himself but was cut off by his other cousin.

"You all got caught up. You can't just blame Huey. I know your ass was ready to make it official with Royalty. You were the one that looked ready to put a baby in her." Demetrius raised his perfectly shaped eyebrow at Riley who he could tell looked embarrassed.

"I think you done humiliated the poor boy enough. Let's go kill so people." Hiro looked at them all before walking out the house.

Dante went and got Coco before making his way to his car as everyone else got in their own.

* * *

It took about 20 minutes to get to the warehouse and Huey felt ashamed. He was an embarrassment to this gang. The guilt was eating him away but he had to push them feelings aside to be who he was. Ghost. A stone-cold killer, ass kicking, no shit taking, Ghost. That's who he is meant to be but instead he was acting like a bitch ass version of Huey. That stops from now. Ghost is back and he is out for blood.

"Sup Ghost." One of the members greeted him as they all walked into towards the main room. Huey showed that he acknowledges him and continued walking with his top people behind him.

Huey stepped to the front of the room and immediately, the room feel silent which just demonstrated how much power this one man held. His cousins, brother and right hands stood behind him as they all looked around at the people in front of them. It had a mixture of pissed, unimpressed and anticipated facial expressions. A lot were mad that Ghost was not who he was supposed to be while the majority where ready for the next instructions.

Huey took a deep breath before beginning to speak.

"Just by looking on all your faces I already know how you feel. Yeah I know. Shitting leader I am. Dad would be disappointed." Huey looked at the older members who knew how notorious Christian Freeman was. They understood what Huey meant. They all saw his sons gain those same ruthless characterises but now it was swaying but not for long. "That all ends today. After today, its war. Any Russian motherfucker that wants to cross our path will be tortured and killed. I am not telling you to forgive me for the lack of leadership these past few months but fuck all that shit for now and let's act like the proud Panther's we are meant to be. We need to protect our city. Our businesses. Our people. This is our house so don't let them motherfuckers try and fuck our shit up and kill us!"

Everyone in the room was getting pumped and began applauding and shouted their agreement which just fuelled Huey to push further.

"Now. As some of you may know, we" Huey turned slightly to look at Caesar, Hiro and Riley as he referenced them. "have gotten some friends in a bit of a predicament. They were kidnapped. Unfortunately, Midnight was captured too." There was low murmur in the room as a few people were shocked that Raven had been kidnapped.

Midnight was her street name since raven's were black, it was her favourite colour and she was born at midnight so it worked for her.

Huey continued. "We can't let them get away with that shit. They need to pay for what they did. Tonight, I will get them back and don't you worry about how I am. These injuries don't mean shit. I will fix what I did wrong. I need you all to be armed and ready for anything. For who knows how long, shit is not going to be pretty so I want you all to protect yourself as much as you can, I don't want you getting hurt or worse."

People were nodding their heads in agreement as Ghost's motivational speech was taking affect.

Reezy stepped up besides his brother and the two shared a knowing look that said everything they needed to say. 'I'm sorry' and 'I got you bro'. The younger brother reached into his pocket and pulled out the bandana that were a staple of who they were and held it in a closed fist. Hiro, Caesar, Dante and Demetrius stepped up too and did the same thing Riley did. Huey smirked before pulling out his own. He paused and stared at it and somehow felt the power radiating off it and touch his soul. The Panther's mouth was wide open on the bandana as it roared and Huey was ready to roar too.

Slowly, he raised his closed fist that held onto the fabric and screwed his face in anger.

"Let's win a fucking war!" Huey shouted and instantly the room filled with determined shouts from every single body in the room, all fired up for the next move.

"That's what I'm talking about!" Caesar screamed next to him.

The two looked at each other and nodded. As the cheering died down, Huey spoke again.

"While we're gone, I'm going to need people to defend the clubs and makes sure none of them get even a mile close. Today, I want more product on the street, get our money up. If you catch any one the Russians slipping and you manage to catch them, bring them here and beat the shit out of them until they tell you something. If not, just kill them on sight. Look out for a dagger tattoo on their neck as I have seen it on every one that has tried to come at us. We will be back." With that, everyone moved out the room, glad to see that they were getting the leader they deserved. "Let's go." Huey directed to the people around him who then followed him to the tech room.

"Hey Ghost. What can I do for you today?"

In front of a desk full of computers and a large screen was a Latino no older that 18. Huey had heard about his skills. The boy could hack into anything he could get his hands on since he was 14. One of his friends dared him to hack into the police database which he did but the same friend boasted about it in school and 18-year-old Pedro, was arrested. Huey got him out and asked if he would like to work for him but didn't force it on him but the teen jumped at the opportunity and has only been working for The Panthers for 5 months and was already showing the dedication and skill that Huey wanted.

"We need you to track Midnight." Huey cut straight to business.

Pedro looked around the room and saw how tense it was and swallowed. "The implant has only been in for 2 months. I have still been making tweaks to it."

"But it works does it not?" Riley asked annoyed.

"Yes but-"

"Then find her!"

"Reezy relax." Dante held his cousin back. Riley had been on edge ever since the girls got taken and no one could blame him as they were too.

"I am relaxed..." He whispered.

Pedro didn't scare easily. "Listen. I wanted to tell you that her chip might not work because of the new signal I have been working on. It might have interfered with the one she has in which will make it hard to track her. I been meaning to switch all of yours out but it's been hard to get a hold of you."

Huey crossed his arms. "Yeah. Sorry about that, shit been crazy... you said might, so it can still work." Huey pointed out.

"Yes but what would take about 5 to 15 minutes will take 30 minutes or even an hour to track." Pedro explained.

"He's right. Without swapping out the chip she has, it will take longer for this new one to locate her but it's not impossible." Hiro added on which Pedro nodded along. "Track her."

Pedro turned to the computer and began to type what looked like random things to them on the keyboard. Seconds later, the map of America popped up.

"Well that isn't useful." Riley mumbled.

"Patients." Pedro replied as he continued to type. "While you're here, I might as well take out those old chips and put in the new ones. I think it's time we start giving it to everyone else."

"Smart thinking." Hiro smirked at the teen. Hiro usually handed the tech but he much preferred the money side so he was glad they found a smart young man to do that instead of him.

"Shouldn't we get Alex to come do this shit?" Demetrius asked as he saw Hiro pull put a tray, cotton and scalpel.

"We could... but where's the fun in that?" Caesar smirked.

"What's fun with getting your flesh sliced open?"

"It won't hurt Tri... that much." Hiro smirked as he sat on one of the chairs. "So. Who's first?"

They all turned to look at Huey who rolled his eyes.

"Bitches." He mumbled before sitting on the chair in front of Hiro and did his best to move his large afro out the way so Hiro had better access to the chip.

Hiro picked up a remote and moved it to the back of Huey's head. As he waved the red light over it, there was a quiet beep before a faint red light began to flash under Huey's flesh. Hiro created the remote specifically so they could locate the chip that tracked them and find it under their skin without having to dig around for it.

He whipped the area with disinfectant before slowly cutting it open with the small knife. Blood slowly began to pour out but Hiro just went straight in with the tiny clamps and grabbed hold of the chip. Huey didn't even flinch. Seconds later, it was laying on the silver tray with the same red light flashing over the blood it was covered on.

"Done." Hiro grinned.

"You ain't gonna close it up?" Riley asked trying to hide his nervousness. He could face any type of person in a fight but for some reason hated medical care.

"Well-"

"I think it would be better if I do it." Hiro was cut off by Alex walking into the room. He took a quick look at the screen and saw that it showed the map of the state they were in.

"Why isn't our chips come up?" He pointed to the screen as it was all blank when it should have tiny dots on where they were.

"I have made new trackers that make it harder to track the old ones which is a good thing you are here so I can take the old one out and put in the new one." Pedro explained as he pulled out a different tray of small chips with their names labelled on it.

The top people of the gang were the test dummies of it which had be proven to be successful so now they had a better version, they could distribute it to everyone else. It wasn't as if they would be spying on everyone's movements, they would only check if they needed to such as now.

"You just gonna let me bleed or are we going to cover this up?" Huey asked as he felt the blood dripping down his neck.

"Right, one second." Pedro typed on a different computer before handing one of the new chips to Alex. "Same place."

Alex nodded, grabbed some gloves and expertly slipped it back into the same place the old one was and used medical glue to close it instead of stitches. Pedro saw it was in and typed some more things on the computer before on the same large screen that was still searching for Midnight, a red dot began to flash with the word 'Ghost' right next to it with their location now.

"And just like that, it works!" Pedro smiled proudly.

Huey nodded. "You did well." He pulled out his wallet and gave the boy $150 just like that.

"Thanks man."

"Now, the rest of you. Call me when you find her." Huey pointed to the seat he just sat before walking out of the room to have some time to himself before they leave.

* * *

He found himself in his office and slowly sat down at the desk to finally attempt to relax his tense body. It wasn't as if he forgot he just got shot less than 24 hours ago but he chose to ignore it and keep going as if he wasn't in some type of pain. This was not the time to show any weakness.

His desk didn't have much on it since it wasn't one that would be found in the normal businesses. It was just plain and basic. Huey slowly lifted his t shirt up and looked at the bandage on his side. There was some blood soaking through because of all the movement he was doing. He knew that when they go get the girls and get them to safety, it would get worse but he didn't care, he will deal with it after.

He couldn't stop blaming himself. He hasn't felt this much guilt since... Cairo. He deserved so much better. Huey sometimes wished it was him that died and not Cairo because they were after him not Cairo. He was just there. Wrong place, wrong time and wrong people. Maybe they had some curse that meant they weren't allowed happiness. That seems to be the only explanation.

Huey looked at the scar above his belly button that will continue to remind him of the day he lost one of his brothers. That then made him flip over his left arm to see 'RIP Cairo' on his wrist. 5 years after his death, the group of friends all decided to get a tattoo to remind them of the boy who died too soon. It was a reminder for Huey to not take advantage of his life since he got lucky and lived but after that day, he wasn't the same.

What a lot of people don't know is that Huey was there when Cairo's murderer was murdered too.

* * *

_A week had passed since Cairo had been killed and Huey had been shot._

_His friends and family were in mourning, all wondering how this could happen to poor sweet Cairo. They already missed his laughter and his jokes that could light up a room._

_The group of friends were handling it differently. Robyn and Riley forced themselves to act as if everything was normal since they were younger and didn't know the best way to handle losing a friend. Caesar and Hiro barley spoke and paid no attention to the world around them. Huey hadn't been seen since he was shot and kept himself to himself which meant no one knew the anger boiling inside him every second of the day._

_However, Raven was the worse. She lost one of her best friends. They were the first to meet each other and she brought him into the friendship group. She would sit in the dark for hours replaying that moment his eyes lost life and wondered if she could have done anything or if his mom blamed her for becoming friends with each other. She would cry for hours, not eat, nothing. Robyn struggled to comfort her and wanted Huey to help Raven get through it but no one could get a hold of him._

_Huey was spread out on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He could do this for hours. His mother would always have to come and check on him each hour hoping he didn't do anything to harm himself as she saw the self-hate in his eyes and was scared for him. He had yet to have a deep conversation with his father._

_His empty thoughts were now interrupted when he heard the front door close and mumbled voices. He was about to go look until he heard footsteps up the stairs and pretended to sleep when he heard it stop in front of his room. The door cracked open then seconds later, close softly and Huey let out a breath. He guessed it was his father since his mother went to do some shopping._

_The 13-year-old slowly opened his eyes and tip toed towards to the door and opened it. Whoever was in the house began to talk and he wanted to get a closer look despite his healing bullet wound telling him to get back in the bed._

"_I found out who shot nephew." Huey heard his uncle Dominic say. His eyes grew wide and he knew he needed to get closer. He crept towards the top of the stairs and expertly avoided the places he knew would make noise._

"_Who?" His father asks with anger bubbling in his throat._

_Mario was the next to speak. "I had one of them little niggas ask around. Turns out a girl called Nicki tried to make a move on Huey but he wasn't having it so she called her brother, Nick, who was supposed to rough him up, run up on him. She told him that Huey tried to fucking rape her. Can you believe that shit? What these kids be saying these days is beyond my fucking knowledge."_

_Huey, like his father, felt the anger in him growing larger and larger as they learn more information about the day he nearly died and his friend did._

_Mario continued. "His friend got too into it and accidentally hit them. They have been laying low for a while but I know where to find them niggas."_

"_Let's go. Riley is at school and Huey is asleep so we good." Christian told his brothers who agreed and began to get ready to leave._

_Something in Huey told him to go with them but he knew they wouldn't let him come if he asked._

_He guessed he would have to find another way._

_Christian jumped in the driver's seat as his brothers got in too and barely waited for them to close the door before speeding off down the road._

"_He hanging out by the old liquor store." Dominic told his brother from the backseat who nodded and continued driving._

"_I want him to suffer for what he did to my son." He mumbled but it was still enough for everyone in the car to hear him._

"_But we gotta make an example of him. Show other motherfuckers that they can't just be running up on our kids like that. If that happened to Anthony, I would torture him so he feels the pain he would have felt." Mario added._

_Christian nodded. "That's why I want to do it."_

"_I want to kill him."_

_The sudden new voice scared the men and caused them to scream and get their guns ready to shoot the intruder._

_Christian had to quickly pull over to the side of the road to avoid crashing and turned to where the voice was coming from._

"_Huey! What the fuck you doing here?! You're supposed to be asleep."_

_Huey had been hiding in trunk of his father's car and waiting for the right moment to make his appearance which he had to admit was hilarious the way they reacted if the situation wasn't so heavy. He decided now was a good time to make his presents known._

"_This is why we call your ass Ghost." His uncle Mario shook his head as he sunk into his seat._

"_Answer me Huey P Freeman." His father said sternly._

_Huey sighed before climbing out and getting in the backseat as all the older Freeman's waited for him to answer._

"_I pretended to be asleep and when you went back downstairs, I snuck out and listened to your conversation. When I heard you found out who shot me and killed Cairo, I knew I had to come. I needed to kill him myself."_

_The car went silent as they were all shocked at what they heard. Their 13-year-old son and nephew wanted to kill. He wanted to take someone's life. They could see the look on his face and knew he already made his mind up about it, which kind of scared them._

"_Ghost. It's not as easy as you think." Dominic tried to tell him. They all knew how much the first kill will stick to your mind._

"_I know."_

_Christian shook his head as he moved his hands over his short cut hair._

"_I can't let you do it. Your mother will kill me."_

"_She doesn't have to know." Huey looked as his father in the same red eyes he inherited and they had a silent argument._

"_Maybe he might be the next leader of The Panther's... Anthony is going to end up in college..." Mario said softly as he looked at the older men. Anthony was the oldest cousin so it was to be expected for him to be the next to take over but he spent more and more time doing sports that he barely spent time out on the streets to which he was grateful for. They all had a feeling that Huey was about to end up deep into the game from him showing interest in fighting and knew he could handle it._

"_But it's too soon. He's only 13." Christian argued._

"_I'm right here-"_

"_Not now Huey." Huey closed his mouth and sunk back into his seat. "Sorry. It's just a lot to handle. It's not every day that your son wants to kill someone."_

"_It would happen someday." Huey eyebrows screwed together in all seriousness which caused the tension in the car to rise. This was not what they expected._

"_Ay Chris. We need to go before we miss them niggas." Dominic told his older brother._

_He nodded and continued driving but couldn't help but think about his son that was about to go down the road he took. It was always something he thought would happen but not so soon. His friends shouldn't have been killed at this age which is why they were going to do what they had to do. They couldn't be disrespected like this and feel as they could harm the Freeman's as well as killing an innocent child. No child should be killed._

"_There they are." Mario pointed as he saw the two boys they were looking for on the corner of the road._

"_Huey. Stay in the car you hear me." His father turned to him seriously and all he could do was nod._

_Huey sat and watched as they all readied their guns and pulled the Panther bandana over their faces. He looked at his father and uncles in admiration at how dangerous they looked in their all black and he could feel the power emitting off them. He wanted to feel that power._

_Christian__ sped down the road and Huey saw Nick and his friend's facial expression drop. The three men jumped out the car, had the guns aimed and began shouting before the two could even think about running away. Unfortunately for Nick's friend, a bullet penetrated his skull after leaving Christian's gun while Mario and Dominic held Nick at gun point as they shouted for him to get in the trunk._

"_Move bitch ass nigga!"_

"_Get the fuck in the trunk now before I put a motherfucking bullet in your head like you friend!"_

_Those were just the few words that were being shouted to the man. Huey leaned forward and his eyes slightly opened at the sight in front of him. He has seen someone get shot before but this was up close and personal. He could see the bullet wound in his head, the lifeless eyes and the blood slowly sliding down his forehead onto the pavement. It made a shiver run down his spine._

"_If you make any noise, I will fucking shoot you." Huey heard his father say before slamming the trunk shut and jumping back into the driver's seat as his uncles hopped back into the car too._

"_Damn. Didn't think we would be shooting them there and then." Dominic laughed as he looked at his older brother who just shrugged._

"_Easy to just have one." He looked up in the rear-view mirror and made eye contact with his son. "Now Huey. This may be the day you become a man even though I wish it would be a later date or never. I hate to say this but I think you're ready to witness all parts of the life we live. One day, this could all be yours."_

_Huey slightly nodded before watching the world go past them outside. His bullet wound was throbbing but he ignored it. He didn't want to think about it. He was at least glad it was in his stomach instead of his brain like how his dad just did the other guy. From what Riley told him, some people thought it was cool that he now had a scar to prove he was shot but it was just a constant reminder that he survived while Cairo didn't. That name was going to haunt him for a long time. A reminder that the wrong person died that day. Well, that was how Huey felt._

_Before the young boy knew it, he was trailing behind the older Freeman's as they dragged Nick across the floor to a single chair in a dull room. Huey knew they had already done this before._

"_Please! I'm sorry!" Nick begged as he was thrown into the chair and duck taped to it._

"_Shut the fuck up!" Mario punched him in the face which caused him to throw his head back from the force._

_After he was strapped to the chair, they all stepped back._

_Huey stood further off into the corner and just observed. This was the three men the streets feared. They didn't care if someone was the same height or taller than them, they will still square off to them. They weren't scared of no one._

"_Why did you shoot my son?" Christian asked but he already knew the answer, he just wanted to hear him say it._

"_I didn't shoot him! The other nigga did and you already killed him, you don't need me anymore. I didn't pull the trigger. Please just let me go." Nick begged._

_They didn't like that answer. Suddenly, Dominic had kicked him right in his chest causing the chair to fall backwards. He picked it up and walked over to his brothers._

"_Why the fuck did you shoot my son?!" His powerful voice roared into the empty room which was nearly enough to cause Huey to jump from the sudden base of his tone._

"_It was accident..." Nick managed to cough out. "My sister told me he tried to force himself on her so I just wanted to rough him up so he didn't try it again. This dumb ass nigga got trigger happy and shot them. I was mad as fuck which is why we been laying low because I knew your ass would come after me. I'm sorry about little homie that died man. It wasn't meant to be like this."_

_Christian stroked his beard. "You probably one of the dumbest young niggas out here. Thinking you could run up on a Freeman." He laughed with no sense of humour behind it. "If Huey ever did some dumb shit like that which I know he would not." He took a quick glance to his oldest child who really and truly shouldn't be in the same room right now. "You come and tell me and I sort that shit out. You don't run up on him thinking you was going to get away with it. Not only did you fuck up there, you killed an innocent child because you don't think straight." Christian poked his head forceful before walking away._

"_I know. I know." Nick turned to Huey who had his eyes trained on him with no emotion. "Look man. I'm sorry about all of this man, it wasn't meant to be like this. I'm sorry Cole died. I-"_

_The three men's eyes grew wide as they turned to Huey and back at Nick. During his sorry ass speech, a dagger managed to find itself lodged into his chest. They then realised it was the same one Huey had received for his birthday._

"_His name... was Cairo." Huey breathed heavy as he watched Nick's shocked face._

_Christian, Dominic and Mario all shared a knowing looking. Huey was more than ready._

"_I guess this is where Ghost will be truly born." Dominic nodded as he looked proudly at the knife he got his nephew, in the chest of a disrespectful man. "Your mama is wrong, I did get the right present for you. Glad to see it is in use."_

"_Please... don't kill me..." He begged._

_Christian took out a simple 9mm that had more bodies than Huey's age and held it to Nick's head._

"_You see... if no one died, or got hurt, I would have considered it but a mother is now grieving her child because you wanted to be a big bad gangster. Let me tell you something." He moved the firearm so that it was in his mouth. Huey did not tear his eyes away. "You ain't shit and you will never get the chance to be shit. You will be made an example of. If anyone over the age of 18 tries anything with my sons or my family... they will be met with a bullet to the head." Christian was about to pull the trigger when a voice stopped him._

"_Wait." Huey stepped up to the light next to his father and crying man. "I want to do it."_

_Christian dragged Huey over to where his Mario and Dominic were standing just a shocked._

"_This isn't no game Huey."_

"_I know."_

"_I don't think you do."_

"_I do." Huey told him as serious as ever. "He shot me and killed Cairo. How many times do we have to go through this? Therefore, I should be the one to get my revenge." He went to glare at the man tied to the chair but his father forced him to look back up to him._

"_Now listen to me boy. This is some serious shit right here. Your first kill is not something to take lightly. I don't want you to be traumatised after this. You've already seen too much..." He sighed. "I just want you to know that getting revenge won't solve your problems. In fact, in this case, it will create more because that will affect your mentality."_

"_Dad."_

"_Huey."_

_Huey sighed. "I know it will be hard to do it but I need to or I will hate myself for not doing it. I may be young but we all know I am at least 17 mentally." He turned to his uncles who couldn't help but nod in agreement. "What I'm trying to say is... if I start having nightmares or whatever, I will come and talk to one of you and we don't have to tell mom because she might just commit murder too." The men chuckled at the mention of Mackenzie. She most definitely would kill them all if she found out he was even out here with them._

"_I think little man should do it." Mario shrugged._

"_He got balls that for sure." Dominic showed the famous Freeman smirk which the brothers all mirrored. "If he's sure..."_

_Christian took a deep breath before looking at the gun in his hand and back at Huey. He did it again before picking his sons hand up and placing it in his hand. He slowly removed his large hand and watched Huey get used to the weight in his own smaller hand. "Get a feel of it..."_

_Huey looked down at it and looked at every curve and detail of it. It was kind of heavy but nothing he couldn't handle. He got a tight grip of it and his fingers hoovered over the trigger._

"_Woah woah." Mario stopped Huey. "If your finger going to be all up on the trigger like that, at least aim it at your target and not at our heads nigga."_

_Christian and Dominic laughed for only a second before getting serious again._

_This was a big moment._

"_Whatever you do Huey... you cannot tell your mother about this."_

_Huey looked up at his father and nodded. He turned his head towards the man who was silently waiting to see how his fate would end. Was it really going to be at the hands of a 13-year-old seeking revenge?_

_Huey slowly stepped up and lifted the gun._

"_Please... my sister..." Nick began to beg but Huey blocked it all out._

_He closed his eyes, lifted the gun slowly, took a deep breath... and pulled the trigger..._

* * *

That was 12 years ago. He was now 25 with endless amount of bodies on his hands.

He has only talked to his father once about that day after it happened and since that, they never went back to talking about it again. He would be lying if he said that after that day it didn't change him. He didn't take shit from anyone and perfected his fighting skills so that he was almost untouchable. His father saw the changes and kept a close eye on him to make sure he didn't spiral out of control which he was thankful Huey didn't.

Till this day, everyone believes Christian was the one that pulled the trigger but only four people knew the truth. Maybe it was time to tell the others. They deserved to know, didn't they?

Sighing, Huey stood and made his way back into the room where everyone else was. They were in there talking and he could see that they all had a small bandage at the back of the neck.

"Look who decided to join us again." Demetrius smirked as he saw his older cousin walk in.

"Where you go to nigga?" Riley asked.

"I had some thinking to do... I need to tell you all something." Huey told them more serious than he ever was which whipped the smile off of all their faces.

"What you gotta say bro?" Caesar asked.

"I killed Nick." He blurted out.

Hiro sent him a questioning look. "Nick? As in the bastard that killed our boy Cairo when we were 13, Nick?"

"Yes. I killed him."

"How did you kill him if you were only 13?" Dante questioned.

"I overhead dad talking about who shot us with Uncle Rio and Uncle Dom and decided to come with them so I hide in the car. It was too late for them to turn back so I joined them and saw them kill his friend and kidnap Nick. I watched them beat him up before I threw my dagger at him and told dad I wanted to kill him. He was against it but in the end let me do it. I pulled the trigger. I killed Cairo's killer." Huey summarised the years old story and everyone in the room was shocked.

"Wait. They really let you kill someone?" Alex was confused.

Huey nodded. "I was going to find a way to kill him myself anyway, at least they were there while I did it to get me through it."

"That shit is loco. I'm 18 and I can never imagine killing someone let alone at 13. At 13 I was playing with computers." Pedro commented shocked.

"There's nothing normal about being a Freeman. Riley was 16 when he got his first kill and that shit was an accident."

"Hey hey, let's not go down memory lane now." Riley jumped back in.

"You're saying it like he didn't try and kill us first. It just taught us never to get in a car with you again." Caesar snorted.

"Whatever nigga." He mumbled.

"Why you telling us this now?" Hiro asked.

Huey sighed silently. "I have been thinking about the lives I have messed up from being associated with me."

"You do realise that this is the best shit me and Caesar could have done." Hiro smirked.

"Yeah man. It's not like you was holding us hostage to be your friends. To be honest, the perks of being friends with the Freeman's were amazing back in high school and still does justice to this day." Caesar grinned making Huey shake his head.

"So niggas really out here using our names for clout. Wooooow. Gay ass niggas." Riley shook his head disappointedly.

"Whatever man." Hiro rolled his eyes. "It's all cool Huey. You our bro and you did what you had to do. It's not your fault that they got kidnapped. All we can do is make it better by getting them back and getting them the fuck out of Chicago as much as we all hate to see them go."

Huey looked at his family in the room and knew he had the best ones he could ever asked for. Loyal. Hardworking. Strong. Reliable. Just a few words to describe them but he wouldn't admit it out loud before it fills up their head and Riley call him gay as always.

Their little moment was cut short by a weirdly feminine squeal came from the chair in front of the big screen.

"It worked! It actually worked! I found Midnight!" Pedro cheered.

Huey looked up and saw a small, blue circle flashed on the screen with the name 'Midnight' labelled next to it.

"Let's gear the fuck up." Dante jumped up from his seat and practically ran towards the armoury before anyone could say anything.

Huey gave Pedro one hard pat on the back that sent the boy to fly forward a little out of his chair. "Send over the location. You did good." Pedro nodded before getting to work and Huey turned to Alex who was silently sitting in his chair. "I'm going need you-"

"To stay here just in case one of you motherfuckers wanna get shot again. I know. Don't fuck them stitches up too much." Huey smirked at the doctor before going the same way the others went.

* * *

They geared up and grabbed as many items they could fit onto themselves. Guns, knives, ammo and even grenades. They didn't waste any time and was already out the door but was shocked to see about 10 people standing outside in all black and armed.

"You didn't think you were going by yourself, did you?"

Huey was surprised when he saw Mateo and Mikey as he hasn't seen them ever since they got shot which was bad on his behalf but as we all know he hasn't been thinking straight. They both seemed to be healthy and well for them to be standing in front of Huey the way they were.

"What you guys doing out here?" Huey asked.

"As Mikey said. We coming with you. You are not about to go in there alone and fuck shit up. It's about time I get some action up in this bitch." Mateo smirked.

"Yeah. We all been left out too many times and as you can see, it hasn't worked out very good." Mikey added.

Huey shook his head but he couldn't argue with that. The six of them could have rescued the girls themselves but it was best to have more bodies with them as it would make it easy for them to get in and out. Huey saw that the sun was ready to set and knew they had wasted enough time waiting around. He looked at his people who were all ready for action and said two simple words.

"Let's move."

That was all he said before they all made their ways to the different vehicles and began to follow Hiro's van.

Huey was sitting in the passenger seat as Hiro pulled up the map that Pedro had sent over and was racing to get there. His red eyes stared intensely on the road as he thought about Jazmine and the girls and starting praying they were alright.

'Don't worry. I will be there soon.'

* * *

**Will they get there on time to save the girls or is it too late for them? I guess we just gotta wait and see.**

**I made up the tech stuff so if it makes no sense my bad, I just had to make it up so it could go with the story. I hope you liked the flashback of Huey after he got shot. I have realised that this story will have a lot of flashbacks because I want you all to get a feel of where they came from to be in the postion they are now in.**

**LavenderLuvER18: I guess you just have to wait and see...**

**BoondocksFever234: Huey still hurt but he's back on his shit and of course Raven had to be. Can't have no weak people in the gang, gotta be tough.**

**Make sure you leave your review about this chapter and what your hoping to say next chapter to see if you are right.**

**Until Next Time**

**-TBG**


	26. Chapter 26: And Rescue

**Warning: Overall abuse mentioned/described**

* * *

Jazmine slowly woke up from her restless nap. Her head was beginning to hurt and she had to shake feeling back into her hand from lying on the hard floor.

She had no clue on how long she had been stuck in this room but it felt as if it was months.

Before they all fell asleep, they discovered there was a bathroom attached to the room so were relieved that they wouldn't have to pee on themselves. Some girls who they couldn't lie, looked like prostitutes, had come to give them food and bottles of water and as much as they wanted to throw it back at them, they knew they needed it so had to suck it up and accept it.

She slowly got herself of the ground and staggered to the bathroom, leaving her sleeping friends in the room. She strolled in and switched on the light, she had to squint to adjust her eyes to the change of lighting. Once it did, she felt as if she wanted to throw up.

Surprisingly, there was a mirror in there but she was disgusted at the sight. Dark circles were slowly beginning to form under her red eyes, she looked pale, her hair was sticking out in different places and overall just looked sick. This was no Jazmine DuBois.

She turned on the cold tap and let it run for a few seconds before collected a handful of water and washing it over her face. She did this another time before looking back at her reflection.

"Still horrible." She muttered.

She wanted to cry. But where was the point in that? It wouldn't do anything, her situation won't change. It's not like Vladimir wouldn't see the tears and think it's time to let them go. If anything, from how creepy he seemed, he would probably lick the tears right off her cheek.

A shiver ran down Jazmine's spine. The man was truly revolting.

"Jazzy? You in there?" She heard Cindy call.

"Yeah... just needed... something."

The only thing she wanted was to get the fuck out of there, asap.

"Trust me, we all need something. Jesus would be nice." Cindy said which caused Jazmine to let out the slightest giggle due to her being so tired.

She slowly opened the bathroom door to be met with Cindy who looked just as much as a mess as she was.

"You look terrible." Cindy joked as she stepped out the way.

Jazmine rolled her eyes. "I could say the same to you. If anything, you look worse than me bitch."

Cindy eyes diverted to the bush of hair on her head and before she could comment on it, Jazmine held her finger in front of her.

"Don't. Even. Go. There." Jazmine threatened.

Cindy rolled her now dull, blue eyes.

"That's not fair."

"Life isn't fair."

The two women looked at each other before bursting out in laughter, forgetting where they were for a split second.

"I wanna know the joke." Royalty spoke loud enough for them to hear.

"Little Princess is awake." Cindy commented as they walked back over to where they all 'slept'.

"I must be since I'm locked away in what could be a tower." She breathed out.

Cindy and Jazmine shared a look but couldn't say anything else when Raven and Ming woke up too.

"Ugh." Raven began to cough. "Having a possible broken rib and sleeping on the floor is not the one." She held where her ribs were located as she slowly sat up, making sure not to put too much pressure on them.

"Next time, can we sleep on each other to get some type of comfort? I wanna sleep on Jazmine's fat ass." Ming groaned as she stretched her sore muscles.

Jazmine rolled her eyes. "Hopefully we won't be sleeping any longer as we would be out of here."

"I don't know why it has taken them so long. It only takes a few minutes to track me." Raven questioned.

Something dawned on Jazmine and her eyes slowly began to tear. "Maybe they're mourning..." She whispered but the room was empty enough for the sound to travel so they all heard.

"Why do you think that?" Cindy asked as they all sat down in a circle.

"Huey... he was shot. He dropped to the floor and didn't get up. Oh my gosh I forgot to tell you! How can I forget to tell you that? I saw it before I was dragged into the van!" She answered.

Raven shook her head. "Nah. Not Ghost. It will take more than a bullet to kill him."

"But it wasn't 1... It was 2." Jazmine added and did her best to hold back her tears.

"Maybe they're not coming for us. It was obvious that they wanted to kidnap us just to hurt them but what if they don't care if Huey is dead?" Ming asked.

"We going back to this negativity again." Raven sighed. "Look. They are not just going to leave us, trust me, that's not how they are. Believe or not but you guys managed to become a huge part in their lives without even realising it. The guilt will eat them alive if they know you're dead, even hurt. I know they are beating themselves up from this."

Cindy closed her eyes. "What are we going to do when we get out of here? Shit is never going to be the same."

"When they entered the club, nothing was ever going to be the same."

"I guess it's time to walk around with my pocket knife again." Ming commented.

"You wanna buy me one?" Jazmine looked at her.

"I'll get you one with pink diamonds on it just for you."

Jazmine just rolled her eyes. "I am not 10 anymore."

"But you would look so cute with it. Really brings out your eyes." Cindy added.

"Whatever."

Before they could continue to tease Jazmine some more, a whispered voice could barely be heard.

"Is it just me or is it cold in here?" Royalty had her back against the wall and her eyes closed.

Since Raven was the closest, she scooted over and placed the back of her hand on her forehead. Her eyes widened.

"She's beginning to burn up. I think she is catching a fever from the cut. It might be infected."

Everyone's eyes grew big too and they jumped closer to the younger woman.

"Roy Roy! Why didn't you say anything?!" Jazmine asked in a panic.

"Nigga... I'm... too tired."

"You could have still said something!"

Cindy jumped up angrily. "Fuck this." She stomped over to the door and began to slam her fist against it. "Hey! Motherfucker open up the motherfucking door! Let us the fuck out!"

Surprisingly seconds later, the group of women heard the door unlock. Cindy stepped back as she waited for whoever to walk in.

"Now. Where are your patients beautiful?" Vladimir smirked as he slowly stepped in with a group of people behind him.

"Really? You got other people to do your dirty work again?"

His muddy eyes dived into Cindy's soul which caused her to close her mouth. "It just makes it easier to hold you down while I have my fun. It would be a shame if I... accidentally, slit your throat so early into the game." Vladimir laughed while his people chuckled behind him too. Suddenly, he stopped smiling and everyone else stopped laughing too. "Tie them up." He ordered them.

The women began to panic as they saw his people come towards them. Out of nowhere, there was 5 chairs placed in a circle. One for each woman.

"Get off me!" Ming tried to fight against the men but it was no use, they were too strong.

Everyone was fighting back, even Royalty but it didn't change their situation. They were still going to be tied to the chair.

Minutes later, their hands were zip tied to the back of the chairs and legs tied to the legs of the chair. They couldn't move their limbs which made them feel even more powerless than how they felt 10 minutes again. Would they ever be free again?

"Did I ever tell you I like my women tied up?" Vladimir gloated.

"Because no one would willingly want to sleep with a bitch like you?" Raven smiled.

Vladimir's face dropped. "No. Maybe I should show one of you what I mean." His smile came back as he saw all the wide eyes in the room. He walked around until he stopped at Cindy. He looked her up and down before bending down so they were eye level. "Blondes are my favourite... they know how to have fun and by the looks of it, I know you do too."

He lifted his hand and softly stroked her face but when she tried to turn away, he forcefully grabbed her face and made her look him in the eye.

Jazmine and Ming were the only ones who could see since they were on either side of her and began to panic, scared of what he would do and they had every right to be.

Vladimir leaned forward and planted a fat, wet kiss onto Cindy's lips.

"Hmmmm! Umm!" Cindy tried to protest but she could only make sounds since his whole mouth was covering hers. She felt like she wanted to vomit. It was the most disgusting kiss she had ever received. He moved his other hand so that it gripped one of her breasts hard. A bruise might just form.

Ming and Jazmine could see the tears building up in Cindy's eyes and could feel their own coming. They were going to scream at him to let her go but eventually, he moved away but not without dragging out Cindy's lip which now had a cut from how hard he bit down on it. He licked the blood and grinned.

"Mhmm. Delicious." He sighed and stood up. Cindy was so shocked she didn't even make any noise. She just stared into the empty room with wet eyes.

"Now. For the fun part!" Vladimir loudly clapped his hand which made Royalty flinch from the volume. He saw this and slowly walked around to her. "What's wrong with you, what's your name again...? Right, Diamond..."

"One of your men, who by the way, body is getting eaten by insects at this very moment, cut her stomach and it is becoming infected." Raven explained annoyingly.

Royalty's head was hung low and she could barely keep her eyes open. For some reason today, her immune system was failing her.

Vladimir reached forward and aggressively pull up her top. When the women tried to protest, the other people in the room weapons became visible which made them go quiet.

"Well. If she dies first, her body parts can be the first to be sent to Ghost. A shame really, she has a nice one too." He shrugged before dropping her top and stepping back.

The room was still until Vladimir's back hand met Jazmine's cheek. Everyone was in shock. They did not expect him to strike her the way he did but then again, they didn't expect to be in this situation either.

"Fuck you-!" Cindy's rant was cut off by Vladimir.

"Cover their mouths." He ordered his people, bored. They nodded and pulled out duct tape and slapped it across all of their mouths.

"Hmm!"

"Mhhmmm!"

"Umm!"

Their voices were muffled by the material.

"Finally! You have learned to shut the fuck up!" He laughed. Jazmine was forced to silently cry as she felt a bruise form on her cheek. "Why do women like to talk so much? I don't understand it. I do like them feisty but not so much lip." He sighed. "Natasha." He called the same woman as earlier. "Choose one." He instructed her as he stepped back.

Natasha took his place and grinned. "Can I not choose all?"

"How about 3?" Vladimir compromised.

"Good enough." Natasha walked over to Raven and punched her again in her ribs. You could hear her muffled screams as pain soared through her body.

'I am going to kill this bitch!' Raven vouched in her head as she did the best she could to breathe through her nose.

Natasha walked over to Jazmine and punched her on the same cheek. More tears formed in Jazmine's eyes as no one could even see her trembling lip. "You're too pretty." Natasha punched her harder before walking over to Ming. She reached forward and grabbed Ming's throat and began to squeeze. Her eyes grew wide as she felt the oxygen beginning to cut off. She began to panic and tried her best to rip the restraints off her but it wasn't working.

"Let her go. They can't die yet." Ming could barely hear Vladimir lecture as she almost lost consciousness. When the cold hands left her throat, she could hear her heartbeat forcefully collecting the oxygen from her lungs to send back up to her brain. The pain was agonising and she only had her nose to breathe through which made it worse.

"No fun." Natasha pouted as she went back to her place before.

Vladimir took his place again at the front. "Don't worry. I will let you jump them soon. In all due time."

He walked in a circle and looked at every single tear and bruise forming. He stopped when he saw Royalty's eyes closed.

"Oh how rude. Just going to fall asleep on me... I guess I have to fix that." Vladimir sighed. He reached into his pocket and pulled out swiss army knife and flipped the blade open.

'What is going to do with that...?' Jazmine thought nervously as she saw him twirling the knife.

Casually, Vladimir drove the blade into Royalty's shoulder. Her eyes flung open and her head flew back from the sudden pain she was feeling on her shoulder. Her green/brown eyes stared into Vladimir's dark browns and was begging for him to remove it. She already felt like shit and now this throbbing from her new wound was making everything worse. Royalty began to bawl but it was hard to hear because of the tape of her mouth. Raven manged to find a way to reach other and hold Royalty's hand as she was forced to listen to the pain she was going through and could do nothing about.

Vladimir removed the knife, whipped it on his trousers and watched the blood pour from the fresh wound.

"That will wake you up for a while." He pocketed the knife and walked in front of Jazmine.

He didn't break eye contact from her and kept his eyes on her which made her squirm in her seat.

"You know, everyone talks about your eyes which is why your name is Emerald but I don't see nothing special about it. Same with Sapphire. It's just basic and boring." He lightly tapped Jazmine's bruised cheek. "I only slap you as hard as I did because I had to make an example of you. You're Ghost's girl. You're fucking the leader which means you have just as much power as he does. You can control him just by opening up your little legs. This really is a test of the type of person he is, will he rescue his precious girl? Who knows?" Vladimir stood as he held his hands up in a shrug.

"What should we do with them boss?" Natasha asked eagerly, just waiting to get the order to beat them until they were bloody and bruised even more.

"We're going to leave them in the chairs for a while. Let them think. Then when their injuries get worse, send some pictures to our dear friend." He grinned and Natasha nodded in understanding and joy. She was too into this for their liking.

That's when Raven felt Royalty lose grip on her hand and Jazmine witnessed her head slouch once again. Jazmine manged to take a quick glance at the wound and saw the patch of blood growing larger and larger.

'No no no! We need to get the fuck out of here! I hate begging for help but Huey, hurry your ass up!' She screamed in her head. She couldn't die here. She refused to. She still wanted to be married with children, her own studio and die of old age. Not at the hands of some deranged psychopath.

Vladimir groaned as he looked at each woman tied to the chair. "I am so bored. I thought by now Ghost would have called or even a letter I mean come on! I have all four of their girlfriends and whoever this is, I expected something-"

Bang!

Bang!

Gunshots erupted out of nowhere and everyone turned towards the door.

Vladimir grinned. "Look who finally decided to show! I was getting worried. Sit tight, I'll be back soon." Vladimir's people formed a circle around him and hurriedly escorted him out the room and slammed the door shut.

Once they were all gone, Raven, Jazmine, Ming and Cindy began to fight against the zip ties to try and free themselves. They could feel it slowly sinking deeper into their skin but continued to fight. They had to get out.

Jazmine's mind was racing but one thought stood out the most. 'We're finally getting out of here! We're saved!'

* * *

"We're here." Hiro announced as he turned off the engine.

They had parked in some bushes not far from the building so they had time to plan and discuss their moves.

Huey wasted no time and jumped out the van so everyone followed suit. They all formed in a circle and crouched down to avoid being spotted.

"I need three of you to wait by the vans to make sure no one steals or destroys it and is ready to make a getaway. Also, so you can kill anyone on the outside that might be coming in and out." Ghost began to explain to the men and women standing before him.

"The rest will be split into two. One group to take the back, another to take the front. There might not be a door in the back so find a window if you can, anything to find a way inside." He began to point as he listed people off. "Reezy, MC, HO, Tri, Dee and I will go through the front. We will be taking out most of them so the rest going in through the back will have an easier job, it will mostly be just controlling the runaways. We will find the girls and once we get them, we leave. I don't give a fuck about Vladimir at the moment, trust me, I will find the time to kill him just not now but very soon. Mark my words. I just want to get the girls out safe since they have been held longer than they should have. They shouldn't even be in there. Load up, we leave in two minutes." Ghost looked at each person who nodded to show their understanding. They stood and walked off into their groups to prepare themselves.

Before any of them could speak, Dante's phone rang. He quickly pulled it out and saw it was a facetime from his daughter and answered it.

"Hey baby girl. Shouldn't you be in bed?" He asked quietly so they didn't draw any attention to where they were.

"Yeah. I wanna say goodnight." She grinned. He could tell she was about to go bed because of the bonnet on her head and the pink pjs he could see she had on.

Dante smiled. This little girl was the only reason he fought as hard as he did. She motivated him to make sure he made it home to her every night.

"Goodnight baby girl. I love you. Make sure you're good for grandad and grandma ok?" He told her.

"I love you too daddy and I'm always good. Bye Bye!" Her eyes sparkled as she looked at her father through the phone before hanging up.

The whole time Huey was watching their small but intimate interaction. He couldn't deny how cute their relationship was. Despite the lifestyle he lived, Dante was an amazing father when it came down to it. He would kill for his daughter. Literally. It made him wonder if he would ever find his happiness like Dante did but now wasn't the right time to be thinking about that. He had a mission to complete.

"Alright. What we doing Ghost?" Dee came back over and looked at his leader and older cousin, ready for the next move, knowing he told his daughter he loved her before he entered danger.

"We go in. Find the girls and get them the fuck out. We will bring them to Alex if they are hurt but then straight to their house and you know the plan from there." He looked each one of them in the eyes and they all shared the same determined and angry look.

"Man it's about fucking time we get some real action." Reezy commented as he checked his ammo in his gun.

"I just hope he didn't touch them." HO said as he checked his leg. He hoped it didn't fail him now.

"I hate to be the negative one but we all know he probably did something. Hopefully not as bad as we think." Tri shivered as he began to think of the worst-case sceneries no matter how much he told his brain not to.

"Then let's waste any more time." Huey stood tall. "Let's make that motherfucker pay and get our girls back." They all nodded and checked their guns to make sure they had enough bullets. He walked over to his brother and held up his fist. "See you on the other side."

Riley basically punched his brothers closed fist. "Whatever nigga. Don't bleed out on us. No one has time to be dragging your ass out of there."

Huey smirked and shook his head. Their way of saying 'good luck' will never change.

Ghost walked into the middle to address everyone. "Mask up."

Those two simple words triggered a domino effect. Everyone pulled up their Panther masks and broke off into their groups. They sprinted skilfully towards the building, making minimal sound.

"It says they are on the left side of the building." HO spoke to his group who nodded in understanding. They had to find a room on the left.

Ghost stood from his crouching position. He lifted his right foot and drove it straight into the door, making it fly off the hinges.

"Knock knock niggas!" Reezy shouted as they entered, ready to shoot anyone who stood in their way. They all ran in and turned to the right where they heard screaming girls and shouts. That's when bullets began to fly and they all ducked for cover.

They allowed the girls who were wearing party clothes, to run out as they shot at the ones shooting at them. There was only about 8 of them so it was easy enough to get them out the way.

MC popped out from his position and aimed at the one that manged to find a machine gun. He pulled the trigger once, compared to the man spraying in their direction and watched it penetrate his neck. The man flew back while holding his neck and slowly bled on the floor.

Ghost stood and pulled the trigger twice and killed the last two men standing by shooting them right in their skulls. They didn't even wait for their bodies to drop and was already out the room and onto the next. They could hear footsteps, shouts and gunshots further inside so made sure they stayed alert.

Ghost stopped and held up his fist for everyone to stop. He heard footsteps on his left as they made their way down a long hall. He was right because someone flew out the door which caused Ghost to fly across the hall. Before anyone could come and assist him, three more popped out and began to attack.

The one that pushed Ghost tried to stab him in the head but Ghost managed to recover quickly and blocked it. He then drove his fist into his ribs twice but stopped when the man's other hand punched Ghost right in his injured side.

"Ahh." He gritted his teeth at the pain but didn't let that slow him down. Ghost quickly pulled out his trusted dagger and drove it straight into the man's heart whose mouth flew open in shook. He looked down at the blood slowly pour out but then Ghost stabbed him again and again and again. A wave of fury washed over him and he couldn't control himself. Blood splattered over his face as he stabbed the man again and again.

"Ay yo Ghost! He done man, let's go!" He managed to hear his brother call out to him.

Ghost snapped out of it and looked at the man who was dying slowly. He threw him to the ground and stepped over him, not even bothering to wipe the knife. Ghost paused and took a deep breath before putting a hand on his side. As he lifted it to his eyes, he saw the liquid that was just brighter than his eyes looking back at him.

Tri saw this and spoke up. "Cuz, I think you should wait outside while we get the girls. You're bleeding."

Ghost shook his head. "I'm not turning back now." The bandana over his mouth and nose made his screw face even scarier. It was all in the eyes. The fire was burning in them.

The rest shared a look but knew they wouldn't be able to stop Ghost, they continued making their way down the hall until they noticed two doors at the end of the hall. Before they could choose which one to break down first, they heard footsteps behind them. They swung around with their guns ready to fire at who else was coming to fight.

"Woah! Woah! It's us!" Mateo quickly pulled off his bandana and held his arm up when he saw all the guns aimed it him.

"Damn nigga! What you expect us to do like say we ain't getting shot at." Reezy rolled his eyes.

"Sorry..." He mumbled.

Ghost shook his head and turned his attention back to the doors. He looked at the one closest to him.

Dee stepped up. "I got it." Was all he said before kicking down the door. What they saw was not what they expected.

There were about 11 girls with barely any clothes on and too much make up on. There was only 5 beds and they all were squeezed into the tiny room.

It dawned on Ghost what they were used for by their terrified faces. He pulled his mask down and looked at each one who was trembling in fear.

"We're going to get you out of here and get you to somewhere safe where you can see your families again. My men will take you. Trust me." He told them sincerely.

The girls looked at each other, wondering if they should trust this large man covered in blood.

MC stepped into the room next. "Don't worry. We will take care of you and take you away from Vladimir."

Hearing his name, the girl's gasps and grabbed hold of each other.

A female Panther decided it was time to step in. "I know it's a lot to take in but trust us. We will get you out and away from here." She held out her hand to them.

They looked at each other and then they all jumped up and ran straight to the door but a girl who looked no older than 16 stopped and faced Ghost as she recognised him as the leader.

As she began to talk, it shocked Ghost. "There are five other girls in that room. I heard them talking about it." Her thick Texan accent, rang through his ears as she pointed to the other room. Ghost nodded a thanks as she raced out the room to follow the other girls out as they finally felt some type of freedom as they ran into the darkness.

Ghost felt sick to his stomach. The girls looked young, bruised and sick. He didn't know how long they were there for but he didn't care. That one girl alone came from a whole nother state! Vladimir was truly the scum of the earth and Ghost was ready to kill him.

"One more door." HO said as he walked back outside.

Ghost took it upon himself and wasted no time kicking down the door, knowing this was the right one.

His eyes landed on all five women who was gagged and strapped to chairs in the middle of the room.

"Jazmine!" He shouted as he raced over to her.

HO ran to Ming, MC ran to Cindy, Reezy ran to Royalty while Tri and Dee ran to Raven.

"Look at the mark on your neck!"

"He put his fucking hands on you?!"

"He hit you?!"

"Fuck Midnight!"

"This motherfucker stabbed you?! Oh hell nah!"

They all expressed part of their anger verbally and worked on getting them out of there. The men quickly but carefully peeled the tape off their mouths and began to work on their restraints.

"What the fuck took y'all so long?" Raven breathed out. She was glad to be able to breath out of her mouth again.

"Pedro made a new tracker which meant it was longer to find you." Dante explained to her as he cut one of the zip ties.

"Just my fucking luck to get kidnapped with an old ass tracker." She tried to raise her voice but her ribs were getting to her and she began to cough. "Fuck. That bitch really fucked up my ribs. I'm gonna kill her very soon."

"Are you ok?" Huey asked but he knew she wasn't from her tear stained face and purple bruise on her cheeks.

"Better now that you're here but-" Jazmine was cut off by Riley who was now standing with a passed-out Royalty in his arm. They could see the rage all over his face.

"He fucking stabbed her man! We need to get her to Alex asap. But why she burning and sweating and shit?" He questioned but the anger didn't leave him.

"She caught a fever from an infection of her wound she got from the club." Raven explained as she stood with the help of the twins.

"We've been here long enough. Let's go." Ghost spoke into the room and without hesitating, they all ran out the room, still making sure they were aware of their surroundings. They were still on enemy territory.

Jazmine felt as if she was getting dragged across the hall as she tried her best to catch up to Huey who was sprinting while holding her hand. They didn't get that romantic moment in movies where the two shared a much-needed kiss to show how much they missed each other. No. It was in and out and she was glad. She didn't want to be anywhere near that place ever again.

They got outside and the cold air hit her light skin which caused goosebumps to run all over her body.

"We're nearly there!" Huey shouted to them as they continued to run. She was really trying her best but-

"Fucking rocket launcher!" Jazmine heard Riley shout and next thing she knew; she was laying on the hard floor with a heavy weight on top of her and a bright orange explosion that caused her ears to ring.

"A whole ass rocket launcher! Who the fuck is this guy?!" Caesar yelled.

"I am not waiting for no reload!" Demetrius jumped up and continued to run to the van to prepare it for them so they could leave immediately.

"Ow... what the...?" Royalty stirred as she felt something crushing her.

"Don't worry baby. I got you." Riley said to her as he scooped her back into his arms.

"Reezy?" She questioned.

"Shhhh. Rest." He whispered softly to her and she did just that and went back into an uncomfortable slumber.

"Keep moving!" Huey called out and they all listened.

The doors to the van was already open and they all dived in. They barely had time to shut the door before Mikey began speeding off.

"You guys can rest now. We will wake you up when we stop." Hiro said once they were at least down the road.

He didn't have to tell them twice and within seconds, they were all out cold. The men sighed.

"Now... the hard part." Caesar spoke out loud.

Dante shook his head. "You just gotta keep thinking about their safety. That's the least you owe them."

"We owe them more than that." Huey's scold never left his face as he thought of his next moves. He looked down at Jazmine whose head was resting on his lap as she slept. The war had officially begun and he was ready for action but first, the girls needed to be taken care of.

* * *

"Alex!"

They had just reached the warehouse and raced inside to find Alex.

"How bad?" Was the first thing he asked.

Ghost pointed to Royalty. "Infection and stab wound to the shoulder." He pointed to Raven. "Possible bruised or broken ribs. The rest have bruises to their face and neck."

Alex nodded as he checked over Royalty first as she was placed on the bed. "Get those three an ice pack and rub some ointment on them. It should heal in about two to three weeks." He instructed but didn't take his eyes off the needle and thread as he patched up Royalty's wound. "Someone get me the bottle of antibiotics. She's gonna need it. Oh and get Faith."

Caesar ran out and surprisingly, seconds later, he was back with a female who had rubber gloves on already.

"So what we got?" She questioned. She was a small dark skin woman to Nigerian parents. She was new to all this and acting as a second doctor to Alex. If there were too many injured people, she would be called. Her and Dante shared a quick small smile before she turned back to Alex. The two had been talking for a few weeks now and it was looking good but they were not worried about their relationship now.

"We also have some others girls you need to check out. As in a good 11 of them. It would be better if a woman was to treat them while I get some people to get them clothes and other things." Huey told her before Alex told her everything else.

During the that time Alex was filling in Faith, Riley hurriedly raced over to the cupboard that held majority of the pills. Each section was labelled so he looked to where it says 'antibiotics', grabbed a bottle and gave it straight to Alex.

"Is she allergic to anything?" Alex asked.

"No." Jazmine shook her head. "Why are you giving her pills? Don't you have a drip?" She questioned.

Alex shot a quick look to Huey and he knew he had to step up.

"Let's get that ice pack-" He reached for her hand but she pulled away.

"No Huey. Why can't he treat her that way? What are you hiding?" She crossed her arms over her chest.

Cindy stepped up. "We deserve to know if what you plan to do especially if it has to do with us."

"We want the whole truth. Now." Ming walked up next to the girls.

Hiro rubbed his forehead. "You might as well tell them now."

Huey breathed through his nose as he looked at each woman in the room. They all looked battered and bruised because of him. Cindy's pink lips now had a red cut running down it, Ming's pale neck was marked with finger prints, Royalty was sickly and Jazmine's soft skin was now marked by a large bruise along her jaw line. He didn't want this to happen to anyone. He wished he was stronger to prevent all of this. He shouldn't have let them walk outside on their own. That was stupid on his own part. They listened to him. It was time they were no longer around him so he could stop fucking up their lives.

"You're leave." He simply announced.

They looked at him stunned and confused.

"What are you talking about Huey? Leave where?" Cindy asked.

This time Huey was sterner as a way to block out the sound of his heart slowly breaking knowing the pain he had caused in just over a month of knowing some women.

"Here. Chicago." Their eyes widened. "I don't care where you go, as long as it's not in these streets. You can no longer be here. You need to leave, tonight. We have money and will drop you off to the airport once you collect your things. You don't have to tell us where you go, just go. I'm sticking to what I said earlier, its the best choice."

"Ho-how can you just... what the fuck Huey?!" Jazmine stuttered angrily.

Huey narrowed his eyes. "Look at what happened to you Jazmine. Before you met me, I bet you have never had a bruise that big in a day of your life. It's my fault you're in this position."

"Maybe it is but stop sounding so fucking selfish Huey!" Jazmine screamed at him. Everyone else watched the could-have-been couple going back and forth as they understood they need to let this all air out. They were just the main translators to how each group was feeling. "It wasn't you that put your hands on us, it was him. He is to blame for the bruise I have plastered on my face. You can't go and beat yourself up about this every chance you get. We are alive and that matters more than your guilt of being a bad person, which you are not by the way."

The room was silent beside from the various movements of objects coming from Alex and Faith as they now were working on Raven, who was listening intensely despite being in pain.

"Damn Jazzy..." Cindy mumbled.

Huey took a deep breath as he digested everything she said. It wasn't completely his fault. Everyone could say it but until Vladimir was at his feet bleeding to death, the guilt will continue to eat away at him.

"I still need to get you out of here." Huey chose to avoid the whole conversation as he felt embarrassed. He really was a disappointment.

"So that's it? Our lives in Chicago is over." Ming threw her hands up in frustration. She understood the situation at hand but she couldn't help but to be mad about having to pick up her life and move on.

"We're sorry..." Hiro told them but he looked Ming directly into her eyes to show her how sincere he was being. He failed her as a boyfriend.

"I know we haven't known each other long but we're sorry about what happened too. We wish we could have helped more." Dante spoke for him and his brother.

"At this point, I don't know if sorry is good enough." Cindy said stubbornly.

"We don't blame you for thinking that." Caesar added.

Alex eyes darted around the tense room. "Well-"

"Shit... its bright as fuck." Everyone turned to see Royalty begin to stir once they heard her voice cut off the doctor.

"Royalty!" Her friends and Riley cheered and raced over to her.

"Hmm. So loud."

"We just happy to see you awake and moving. Scared the shit out of us girl." Cindy told her.

"Whoops I guess but where are-" She went to asked but stopped when she saw Riley nervously standing behind her friends. "Riley? What?" She looked around and saw her change of scenery and then the last moment before she went back to sleep flooded her memory. "Oh shit..."

"Oh shit indeed." Ming agreed.

"We have a lot to fill you in." Jazmine sighed before summarising the last hour.

Royalty's eyes were wide. "Damn you serious?" They nodded. "That's some bullshit. Where we going to go now?"

"Atlanta has some good strip clubs if you still wanna do that." Demetrius commented nervously, not sure how it was sound to them.

"At this point, I don't care where we go as long as it has a shower." Cindy groaned.

"You will get the chance to. Alex, are they ready to leave?" Huey asked.

Alex sighed. "Yeah. Just make sure you take care of those injuries. Royalty you need to take these twice a day for 2 weeks on an empty stomach. Make sure you don't miss a day. Clean your wounds because you do not want to be how you was a few minutes ago." He handed Royalty the bottle of pills and she nodded in understanding.

"What other girls were you talking about?" Raven asked as Faith worked on wrapping her up in bandages.

"The room next to where you were, there was some girls in there. They were young, one had a different accent so I won't be surprised if the other girls are not from around here also. Majority was black which just goes to show no one really cares about our black girls. I don't know how many more girls that bastard has but we're going to make sure we get them all out and back home." Huey told her.

Raven was shocked but not shocked at the same time. "Faith and I will take care of it don't worry. You focus on them and- wait, Huey are you bleeding?"

Everyone turned to Huey who black jumper had a light gloss on the side.

"No." He denied.

"Huey-" Jazmine tried to convince him to get Alex to stitch him up but he didn't have time to hear it.

"We need to leave now. We've wasted enough time." Huey brushed them off.

Jazmine didn't like his attitude and had been through too much to care about how he was feeling at the moment. She tried to be helpful but he wasn't having it. It was as if he was getting her to hate him so it was easier for him to let go. What she didn't know was that she was completely right.

"We'll be back Midnight." Demetrius saluted to her as they began to make their way out.

"Bye Raven. I'm sorry we couldn't have been friends from the beginning." Jazmine gave her a light hug which shocked everyone, including Raven.

"Don't worry. Just don't get kidnapped again please. I do not want to be the sacrifice again." She joked.

"Trust me, that's the last thing on my list to do." Ming rolled her eyes.

The group made their way out with a lot on their minds. It was past midnight already and they still had a lot to do.

* * *

The rest of their time together was intense. Everyone barely spoke to each other as the girls packed as much things as they could in the little time they had, still unaware about where they would go.

Huey was acting cold. He really wanted Jazmine to hate him so it was easier to let go no matter how much he wanted to protest against it. He wanted her here with him where he would finally protect her as he should have but he just couldn't risk it. He would be better knowing she safe and he knew this was the only way he knew how to make sure of it.

As they pulled up to the airport, no one made the first move to get out. They all just sat and looked at each other in disbelief of thinking this friendship being over before it could properly start. It all started with the strip club and ended at the airport. This was not what they wanted.

Their thoughts were cut off by the slam of the car door as Huey jumped out.

They decided to take their cars so it looked less suspicious to see a bunch of people jumping out of a black van covered in blood and bruises. Well, less suspicious.

Jazmine jumped out the car and ran over to where Huey was standing as he lit a blunt he pulled out of his pocket. Everyone else slowly pilled out the car to engage in once last conversation.

"You not got anything to say to me?" Jazmine asked him.

He took a large pull. "No."

"You sure? This dropped out of your pocket when we were at the house and it isn't mine." Jazmine pulled out a silver necklace that had a 'J' harm hanging from it.

Huey hide his shook. He changed his mind about giving it to her when they left the warehouse. "I was going to give it to you but-"

He was cut off by Jazmine's lips meeting his. They engaged in a soft kiss which they wished lasted longer.

She slowly pulled away and got off her tip toes.

"Thank you. I know you don't want to see me again because you want to keep me safe but thank you. I had so much fun hanging out with you all. I will take this off your hands. Well, until you put this on for me." She slightly giggled as she handed him the necklace and turned around so that he could put it on.

Huey looked at the back of her head confused. She was not letting him push her way that easily. This really was harder than he thought. He sighed but clipped the necklace around her neck. She spun around and hugged him which he was again, shocked about.

"I forgive you Huey." Was all she said before turning away and running to where the other girls were ready to walk inside the airport to catch a plane to who knows where.

Huey stared as she made her way inside. He will never meet another Jazmine. He didn't know why that hurt him so much. They weren't together. He didn't know if he should hate himself for not making it official or to love himself that he didn't make it official so it was easier to let go. He was confused and sadly he was never going to find out.

He strolled over to where the men were standing watching the women blend in with the airport crowd.

"Do you think we did the right thing?" Caesar questioned as he lost sight of the blonde hair he began to like to play with.

"I hope so." Hiro answered.

"Some bullshit man. Fucking Russians." Riley cursed.

Huey stubbed his blunt before putting the rest back in his pocket. "Trust me when I say we did the right thing. Now, we have business to attend to, let's go."

Huey marched towards his car. They were now safe and leaving Chicago, Vladimir couldn't hold them above him again.

'You're fucking dead Vladimir.' Huey though as he stared out the window, choosing to ignore the view of the airport becoming smaller and smaller.

* * *

The women made their way into the bathroom doing their best to ignore all the stares they were getting from other people as they say all the marks on them. Luckily, they were allowed a quick shower so they didn't look too rough.

They walked into the bathroom to apply some make up to their face to look somewhat decent. Inside, there were three women whispering and side eyeing them.

"What you looking at bitch?" Cindy turned to them. They were not in the mood for other people.

"You best keep your eyes to yourself before I punch them into your head." Royalty threatened.

The three women couldn't contain their fright and ran out of the bathroom without a glance back.

Cindy turned back to taking out her makeup. "We really just going to leave Chicago like we haven't been here for years already."

"Now we have to sell our home." Ming added.

Jazmine, being the optimist one, spoke up. "Being with you three is home. Where one goes, we all go, end of. As long as we have each other, we will be fine."

"I get what you mean but as much as that sounds lovely, where are we actually going to live now?" Royalty asked as she took one of the antibiotics.

Jazmine sighed and looked at her reflection in the mirror as she began to think of all the places they could go when an idea popped into her head.

She wishes she didn't regret this.

"I guess we're going back to where it all started."

* * *

**THE END**

**Nah I'm joking, I wouldn't end it like that, if it ever does end. It has been so long since I have last updated and idk why so I am sorry if this chapter is a disappointment but thank you for all the reviews.**

**Huey didn't get the chance to fuck everyone up but just wait and see. The two groups are now apart so let's see how it goes.**

**DROP THEM REVIEEWWWSS and I will try and put the next chapter out by next week.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	27. Chapter 27: Going Back Home

Woodcrest.

Where it all began.

The birth place of two and where a loving and strong friendship was also born.

They couldn't believe they were running back here after running away from this place five years ago. The circumstances made it even worse. They didn't want to be here.

Once they got their bags and made their way outside, they just stood and took everything in. It was overwhelming. It had been years since they left but not much had changed surprising. From the airport alone, they could tell there was more minorities but still not a lot. Maybe they could blend in and less likely have their past people find them.

"Home sweet home." Ming mumbled.

"Doesn't feel like it... Where to now?" Jazmine asked.

"I think we should stay at that hotel not far from the strip if I'm not mistaken. I think it's still there." Royalty suggested.

"That's good enough for me." Cindy shrugged.

Cindy and Jazmine pulled out their phone and called an Uber. They knew that they wouldn't all fit in one so decided to just use two.

It only took them about 20 minutes to get there. The ride was silent as no one had much to say to each other so they took the time to take in their surroundings. They were comparing what Woodcrest looked like now to when they once lived here. It made them wonder if they would bump into anyone from their past, they hoped they didn't.

The Uber finally arrived to the large hotel and the girls collected their things and made their way inside.

"Good afternoon, welcome to Woodcrest Park Hotel. How may I help you?" The receptionist asked with a big, fake smile on her face.

"Hi, we would like a room for four please." Jazmine told her.

The woman began typing on the computer. "Yes... we have an adjoining room with two double beds in each available. Will that be ok?"

"Perfect, thank you."

"And how long will you be staying with us?"

'How long are we staying here?' They all thought about the question.

"Let's just say two weeks for now." Ming told her and everyone nodded in agreement.

The woman began to type as the guest took out their money to pay. "That's fine. Just make sure to report to reception where myself or a colleague will update your stay duration. Here are your key cards. Rooms 538 and 539." The ladies thanked the receptionist and made their way upstairs.

Ming and Cindy took one room while Royalty and Jazmine took the one connected to them.

Jazmine sighed. "We really had our own place to now be staying in a hotel."

Royalty flopped onto her bed, her body sore from the last few hours. "Look on the bright side. We have room service. Which reminds me, a bitch is hungry." She sat up and grabbed the menu. "I'm feeling a chicken burger and fries. What you want Jazzy?"

"Just get me the same thing." She answered as he began to unpack her suitcase.

"Ok. I'm going to ask the girls what they want." Royalty stood and walked into the connected room.

Jazmine began to move some thing around when she saw something sticking out of the bottom of the suitcase.

"What the...?" She whispered to herself.

She slowly pulled it out and saw it was a large envelop.

"When did I put this in there?" She asked herself. She flipped it over and saw 'GEMS' written on the back.

'This is getting weird.' Jazmine thought to herself as she slowly opened the envelop, scared of what could be inside. Once her eyes rested on what was in there, it grew wide and she shot up.

"Girls! Come quick!" She shouted.

The three women ran in as quick as their legs could take them and stood in front of Jazmine.

"What? What? Are they back? What's wrong? Why're screaming?" Ming asked in a panic.

"No no. Look!" Jazmine shoved the envelop into Cindy's hands as she stood in the middle.

They looked at her strange before looking inside. Their reaction was the same as Jazmine.

"Holy-"

"-Fucking-"

"-Shit..."

Cindy walked over to the bed and tipped it upside. What was in there you may ask?

"Four thousand dollars..." Jazmine spoke out loud.

"But from where?" Royalty questioned.

Ming picked up the letter that fell out and began to read it.

* * *

_Dear Gems,_

_We don't know how many times we can say sorry but we just wanted you to know we are. When we first met you, we didn't think it would end like this. We thought you was just some strippers but you became more than that but because of our selfish ways, we put your lives in danger._

_We didn't want you to go but it was the best decision to ensure you didn't endure anymore pain caused by us. This gang life is one we don't want you to be exposed to._

_**Hiro**__: Ming. In the short time I could call you my girlfriend, was the best time I have had in years. You're everything I could have wished for in a girl which is why it makes it harder to let you go. I'm gonna miss you. I wish I took you to that kickball tournament coming up in Detroit, I wanted to see your eyes light up when your team wins. I wish I got to compare your dragon tattoo to my own. I wish we did a lot of things but we now won't get the chance to. I hope you get what you want in life and knowing you, you will._

_**Caesar:**__ Hey Ciinnndddyyy. Damn I didn't even get the chance to make you my girl. I know under all that stubbornness, I was getting close to the frozen heart of yours. Maybe in another life I managed to defrost it. Maybe in that life, you wouldn't have to be hurt because of me. I'm sorry about it all. I want to make it up to you but no amount of money can cover what you had to go through. I hope whatever you do, you become the most successful in._

_**Riley: **__Sup girl. Ion write but these niggas are so a nigga might as well too. I ain't no bitch some imma just say it straight. I enjoyed fucking you. Yeah, I may or may not have caught feelings at some point but it is what it is. We had fun while it lasted even though I hoped we could have continued but I guess I fucked that up. Just know that any nigga you fuck after me is never going to be on my level, you hear. Anyway, take care of yourself, I mean it. Keep kicking niggas ass when they try and fuck with you. Not even gonna front I will miss you... but I ain't no bitch so good luck in everything sexy girl. It will be weird not having you in my bed anymore._

_**Huey: **__I know you're shocked to see all the money but the guys and I all put $1000 each for each one of you so I hope you spend it wisely. We knew you wouldn't have taken it willingly which is why I stuffed it in your suitcase while you were in the shower. I'm not a sentimental person but I would be lying if I said I wouldn't miss you because I will. Pretty sure Coco will too. She really took a liking to you and I don't blame her. It was nice to meet such a talented and caring woman as yourself. The way you carry yourself is what attracted me to you. You're stronger than you think but I don't want you to be around to be used as a pawn again because you are not one. I apologise for exposing you to Ghost. You should never have met that side. Take care of yourself and the girls. You are truly a gem Jazmine._

_We hope you can forgive us one day. Live the life you wish to live, we hope you all the best._

_From,_

_Huey Freeman, Riley Freeman, Michael Caesar & Hiro Otomo_

* * *

They finished the letter and sat there in shock. There were silent tears running down their cheeks as they read the boys saying goodbye forever. This wasn't what they wanted to happen.

"Of course Riley gonna say some dumb shit like that." Royalty let out a single laugh before sniffing as the tears continued to grow.

"Ugh. I know and Caesar is so annoying. About my heart is frozen." Cindy shook her head as he whipped her tears.

Ming nodded. "And Hiro always trying to do some cute shit all the time."

Jazmine took the letter from Cindy and looked at Huey's paragraph. His handwriting was so neat and polished unlike his brothers. It showed how in control he was when he wrote. She wanted to leap into his arms so badly right now.

"Why am I going to miss them so much?" Jazmine wondered out loud. She lifted her delicate hands to feel the small charm that rest just at the beginning of her cleavage as she remembered allowing Huey to clip it on for her and her giving him a kiss in thanks.

They all shared a look before letting out full blown sobs. They held open their arms and pulled each other into tight hugs as they cried and cried. It was more than just because of the letter, they were in pain and they needed to let it out freely without a serial killer hovering over them.

They cried for another five minutes until there was a knock at the door.

Cindy whipped her face quickly and sniffed but her eyes were now blood shot red.

"I'll get it." She walked towards the door, looked through the peephole, unhooked the chain and opened the door.

"Room service." The man smiled as he stood with a cart full of food, completely unaware of the low mood in the room.

"Uh yeah thank you. You can just leave it right there." Cindy pointed to any random spot as she let the man in.

"Here you go." Jazmine pulled out $20 and handed it to him. He thanked her and made his way out.

Cindy chained the door again before walking over to the cart.

"You ordered ice cream and cookies?" Ming looked at Royalty who went to shrugged but remembered her shoulder.

"We deserved it. I knew we would need it." Royalty grabbed her plate before moving over to the table in the room. The rest of the girls followed suit and they sat silently eating their food. It was the first time they have ever eaten in silence.

It wasn't as if they were deep in thought, they just had no energy for conversation. They would be talking and laughing right about now but that was before they experienced what they did.

Once they finished, they grabbed the surprisingly still frozen ice cream and cookies.

"Movie?" Jazmine suggested.

"Sure." They agreed.

Ming grabbed the tv remote and put on 'The Iron Giant' since it was the first one she saw and they couldn't be bothered to search for another film.

Hours passed as the four continued to drown themselves in children's movies and before they knew it, it was night-time.

"We would be getting ready at the club right about now." Jazmine mentioned as she got her toiletry stuff to get ready for a bath.

"Yup... do you think we could find some here?" Royalty suggested.

"As much as I don't want to rely on stripping, it gets the bills paid. Well, we not paying bills no more so I guess it gets the hotel fee we paying for." Cindy snorted.

"I'll google it." Ming pulled her phone and began to search. It didn't take long before she found one. "There's one called 'The Wild Tiger' about 8 minutes away. We can check it out tomorrow night. Right now, I need a bath and sleep."

"Indeed, and I have to clean these stupid wounds." Royalty complained.

Jazmine looked at her worriedly. "Are you sure you'll be able to dance?"

"Trust me girl. No wound is going to stop me from getting my bag."

"I hear that. We gonna have to be caked up in make up until these fucking bruises clear up." Cindy said annoyingly. They all understood her anger. They felt the same way.

"We can pick some more up tomorrow." Ming suggested.

"We have no choice." Jazmine stood and walked towards the bathroom. "Hopefully we don't see anyone."

"Don't jinx it!" Cindy shouted back at her before her and Ming went to their room to also have a relaxing bath.

Royalty connected her phone to her Bluetooth speaker that she brought with her everywhere and began to blast music as she waited for Jazmine to come out. Cindy left the door connecting their rooms open so that the music could make its way inside their room.

For nearly 2 hours, they spent their time consumed in music. They didn't play no upbeat songs since they weren't really in the mood to be all hyper, it was mostly calm R&B and Reggae. No words needed to be said between them but they all had the same thoughts.

How was Huey/Hiro/Caesar/Riley doing?

Are they ok?

Is Raven ok?

Is Vladimir dead?

Is he after them?

Will they ever be able to go back to Chicago?

Who still live in Woodcrest?

Would their family welcome them with open arms or will they still be disowned?

Did they even want to see their families?

So many questions swirled in their head and there were less and less answers. Endless possibilities but none seemed positive.

Jazmine laid on the white sheets staring up at the celling. It had been a very long two days.

She had a weird feeling. Huey was the reason she was beaten and bruised but for some reason she wanted to run into his arms and have him hold her all day and all night long as she cried into his chest. That was not a normal feeling to have. People would think she's crazy.

'Maybe I am crazy.' She thought.

Sighing, she rolled over and grabbed her phone. She pulled up Snapchat and went through her memories to look at the good times she had but that made it worse.

Jazmine scrolled down to the first snap she ever took with Huey. It was when they went out on their 'sorry for the abrupt end to the night' date. They looked amazing. There was something about a man driving that was weirdly attractive and Huey made it look 100 times sexier. Then the day they took Coco to the park. They were in the restaurant and Jazmine and Coco were taking silly pictures and videos while Huey just sat there. When the waiter came back over, she asked if she could take a group picture for them. After begging Huey, they finally managed to get some.

Coco had her arms wrapped tightly around their necks as she pulled them in closer. Her and Jazmine had large smiles across their faces while Huey barely had a smirk on his. He just stared dead into the camera as he was forced to sit and take the picture but she didn't care. She loved the picture.

Jazmine heard shuffling and pretended she was asleep. She opened one eye and saw two figures standing at the door.

"Jazmine? Royalty? You guys awake?"

Jazmine sat up once she realised it was Cindy and Ming.

"Yeah. I can't sleep." Royalty answered.

"Can't stop thinking about... the place?" Ming asked.

"Yup." Jazmine joined in. "Wanna join?" Jazmine threw open her bed sheets and held open her arms.

"Yup." They all raced over and jumped into her bed.

They laid with Jazmine and Cindy at the top and Royalty and Ming at the bottom.

"Just like childhood." Royalty remises.

"You know it's crazy that it has been 7 years since we have all slept in the same bed." Cindy mentioned.

"Word? Damn."

"Some things never change I guess." Jazmine sighed.

"Don't you think it's crazy how our lives just switch up the way it did?" Ming asked.

"For real. I was that bad bitch Cindy McFearsome and all that shit and now I just want to cry every two fucking seconds and I hate that shit!" Cindy exclaimed her frustration.

After that, they all sat up and looked at each other in the dark.

"You're not the only one. What do you think I was doing in the bath?" Jazmine held her hand and looked at her.

"I hope washing." Cindy joked which made them all laugh for a second.

"Of course silly but I had to shed a few tears away from you all. I was always known as the cry baby growing up, I'm not trying to crying so much in front of you all."

Ming shook her head. "Jazzy. If you want to cry just cry, same with you Cin. We don't judge each other ever, that's not how we roll. We're sisters, we have each other's backs no matter what. We're emotional reeks together too."

Cindy nodded. "You're right. We are the baddest bitches out here. We have to forget about them boys and move on. We are strong independent women. We had our own house and our own car."

"And we will work and get that shit back. We worked too hard to have the shit we got." Royalty said so determined that her natural Jamaican accent came through.

"Hmhm! But for now, I am tired so this bad bitch is going sleep." Jazmine flopped back down onto her pillow. "Good night bad bitches."

"Goodnight bad bitch." Was the reply she got. They all laughed but then focused on going to sleep.

Feeling each other's body in a safe, warm environment made it easier for them to drift into a dreamless and much needed sleep. They went from sleeping on the floor, to in a van to on a plane. It was the first time they were in a bed for over 24 hours and they were happy as fuck. They pushed the men to the back of their minds but knew it would be easier said than done to forget them.

* * *

_Hours before, back in Chicago_

_Huey sat in the van on his way to save the girls from the man who dared to cross them when he was in thought._

_Him and the guys agreed that the girls needed to be sent away to be safe. Chicago was not a place for them to stay. They did expect the Russian's to do something like this, well at least not so early. It showed that they were serious about their business but so was Huey. They didn't know him. He didn't give a fuck about any of them. He will kill anyone who gets in his way._

_Huey knew he was about to be on a killing spree very soon and Vladimir was at the top of his list._

_It was hard for him to let them go but he had to. He didn't want to just kick them out of Chicago after they made a living for themselves here. They had a job, a house, a car. He needed to help them some way._

_He taped the back of the van to signal for his brother and friend to open the little window to see him._

"_What nigga?" Riley asked from the back._

"_I've been thinking. I can't just let the girls leave without giving them some type of shit." Huey said after rolling his eyes at his brother's rudeness._

"_What you thinking?" Hiro took a quick glance over to Huey as he sped down the highway._

_Huey shrugged. "Some type of cash. Just a little something to cover them for as long as they need."_

"_You know money isn't going to make them forgive us."_

"_I know that Caes but I would feel better knowing they had something to hold onto and put towards whatever they need." Huey saw Caesar nod in understanding and turned back to the front but still in conversation._

"_How much?" Riley simply questioned._

_Huey shrugged again. "I was gonna put in 1K."_

"_Word?"_

"_I'll put another K in." Hiro nodded._

_Caesar sighed. "I'll add to it."_

_Riley looked at them all and kissed his teeth. "Ite. I add a little sum." He sounded annoyed and unbothered but really and truly, he wanted to give them the money. Most importantly Royalty. She was already hurt and now she was taken, he knew she would need it for medical supplies for her wound. Hopefully it was the only one._

_Huey pulled out his phone and began to send a quick and simple text to on of his guys, Ace, who should get the job done within 10 minutes. "Then its settled. We will give the girls 4K. Thousand each."_

"_They're not going to want to take it." Caesar told him._

"_And how we gonna get it? Not like we can pull up to any motherfucking ATM." Riley said as he pointed to the empty roads._

_Another eye roll. "You know who imma call. Ace will get the money then bring it to the house, we just put the money back after. I will stuff it in Jazmine's suitcase while she's in the shower because I know they're gonna want one, so then she won't know until they reach the next destination." Huey explained._

"_Makes sense." They all nodded._

"_Oh shit, nearly forgot. Pedro told me to give this to you." Caesar reached into his pocket and pulled out a silver necklace._

"_Nigga when did we say we were buying going away presents?" Riley answered annoyingly as Huey grabbed the item._

"_We didn't." Huey looked at the necklace before stuffing it into his pocket. "A few months ago, a crackhead was harassing me to buy it so I did for him to leave me alone. I cleaned it of course. It was just in my office because I didn't know anyone with a name beginning with a 'J'. I found it when I went back in there today and asked Pedro to put a tracker in it and was going to give it to Jazmine... I don't think I'm going to give it to her anymore." Huey surprisingly expanded on._

"_Why not?" Hiro took another glance at his friend and saw that he was so deep in thought, he didn't realise he was spilling out what was on his mind._

_Huey shrugged. "I don't deserve to follow her. To know where she is, where she's going. I don't deserve to feel at ease knowing she is happy and safe away from me. Jazmine deserves her own happiness and freedom without me compromising it. I don't want her to have another reminder of me. I want her to move on and forget about me, about us."_

_The four were silent as they took in what Huey said. They all felt the same way._

"_I hear that but if it gives you some piece of mind to know she isn't close to Chi-town, then give it to her. You owe yourself at least that." Caesar tried to reassure him._

"_Caes right man. I would have done the exact same to Ming if I could." Hiro nodded in agreement._

_Riley shook his head. "Ion know man. Kinda stalker-ish. I mean I probably just watch her ig and shit."_

"_You're still being a stalker Riley." Huey told him annoyingly._

"_Nigga no it ain't. Your ass is knowing her exact location, my ass is just seeing what she posts which will then let me know where she is." Riley justified himself._

"_Well, I would love to continue this conversation but we're here." Hiro cut the two brothers off and the van got serious._

_It was time for action._

_As the four went and rescued the girls, their dear friend Ace got the job done and easily handed off the four thousand dollars to Huey once they got to the warehouse. By this time, Huey forgot all about the necklace which meant when he snuck the money into Jazmine's suitcase, he didn't even realise it dropped out of his pocket. Jazmine teared up when she saw it but quickly pocketed it when she heard someone knock on her door, telling her they were ready to leave, which meant she only had time to confront him at the airport._

The boys never looked at the tracker. They wanted to give the girls their own privacy and after seeing how banged up they were, it was best if they didn't know. The blood, bruises and soon to be scars that now plagued their bodies will now plague their minds. Maybe they saw a future with the girls maybe they didn't. They just knew it would be a very long time before they could find another female as amazing as them four. It seemed almost impossible.

* * *

Jazmine stirred as she began to wake up. She tried to stretch her limbs but hit two bodies in the process. At first was confused until she opened her eyes and saw Ming, Royalty and Cindy all knocked out on her bed.

'They look more comfy than me.' Jazmine thought. She looked at her phone and saw it was 11:45am already. 'We defiantly needed that sleep.'

She swung her legs out the bed before making her way to the bathroom.

After using the toilet, she turned on the shower and began to strip. She didn't remove her eyes from the mirror as she looked at her reflection. There were a few red marks on her wrist, ankles and arms from when she was tied up and when Huey jumped on top of her from the explosion.

'Damn. Thinking of Huey again. This is going to be harder than I thought.' She sighed before carry on to analyse herself.

Her face was the one she wanted to avoid seeing the most. She didn't want to look at it but it was hard not to. It wasn't something she could easily hide like Royalty could. Hers was slap bang on her cheek. Everyone would see it if they stared too hard at it when she has makeup on. It was a dark purple colour which is a completely different colour from her lighter skin tone.

Not wanting to contemplate on it any longer, she jumped in the shower to get herself ready.

After her shower, she walked out the bathroom in a towel to only see Royalty in the bed.

"Where's the other two?" She tightened towel over her body while she threw the other one off her wet hair which allowed her curls to fall onto her shoulders.

"They went into the other room to get changed." Royalty replied as she walked into the bathroom herself.

Royalty shut the door, turned on the shower and took off her clothes. She constantly forgot she was injured. She got stabbed not once but twice and was fighting an infection but she didn't want anyone to see her in pain because she didn't want to look weak. Little did they know, she was crying out in pain inside her head. She hoped they didn't catch on.

The Jamaican native felt a fire burning inside her, a new type of anger that she has never felt before. A whole new persona was about to come around and she was not going to let another man hurt her again. She got in the shower and winced as the water touched her cuts but ignored it. She hoped they would close up soon.

Cindy sat looking for something to wear out when she stopped and picked up a tiny item. It was a simple blue bracelet. She didn't expect to find it in her suitcase.

When Cindy got dragged to join Ming and Hiro on their date, Caesar was there too. She thought he was trying too hard but she secretly enjoyed the chase. He was the only man she would allowed to win her over the way he was trying because it wasn't over bearing. He was sweet and funny. He made the effect to make sure she was smiling no matter what madness was happening in his life. She looked at the bracelet and contemplated if she should put it on. They were supposed to be forgetting about those four men but she and everyone else knew it was going to be hard.

Letting out a deep sigh, she slipped the item on her wrist and continued her original search.

Ming stood in the shower with her eyes closed and allowed the hot water to run down each curve of her slim body. Her wrist and throat were sore but there was little she could do about it. She delicately touched her throat and winced. The only time she has been chocked was during sex which was arousing but this was aggressive and painful. There was no safe word. Now she wondered if she could ever get over the feelings of his rough hands slowly decreasing the oxygen to her head. Ming now felt as if she was very against being strangled during sex. She didn't know if she would get flashback but didn't really want to experiment with it as of yet. It was too soon.

She wished the shower could wash away her worries and trauma but no amount of water could take those memories away. Ming sighed and forced herself to change her thoughts and began to concentrate on washing her body.

"Everyone ready?" Jazmine asked as she stood next to the door. She had on a grey Puma tracksuit and left the hoodie unzipped which showed off her white vest top that stopped just above her belly button. She wore white Air Forces with them.

"Yup." Cindy answered. She wore black ripped jeans and a red t-shirt that had the Jordan logo in the middle and put on one of her many red Jordan's.

Ming walked out in denim ripped jeans, yellow Converse's and a yellow wool, turtle neck that was sleeveless. "I don't normally like turtle necks but I'm loving it now."

"Has anyone seen my pills?" Royalty asked as she stepped out of the bathroom. She had the same trainers as Jazmine, jean shorts and a n oversized t-shirt that was just longer than her shorts.

No matter how rough they felt, they never allowed themselves to walk outside any type of way.

"Here." Cindy threw her the bottle she found on the desk which Royalty caught perfectly.

"Thanks. We can go now."

The four women closed the door after double checking that they had everything and made their way to the reception.

"Uber or walk?" Jazmine asked.

"I think we should walk. Take a trip down memory lane." Royalty suggested. They all nodded and took the 15-minute walk to the mall.

The whole time they would point things out from the past and have 'remember when' moments.

"Remember when that dog chanced us down this road." Cindy laughed.

"Yeah that bitch was crazy!" Ming joined.

"Ah shit. This was where we fucked up them girls." Royalty pointed to a simple road with a few local shops.

"We beat their ass. Even Jazzy joined in and she wasn't bout that life back then." Cindy smirked.

"You know when it comes to you three, I would defend you no matter what." Jazmine rolled her eyes.

Their conversation continued up into the very moment they walked into the makeup shop in the mall.

"Hi! Welcome to Cute Face, would you like any help?" A short woman asked as they walked in.

"Yes, where is your Fenty Beauty?" Jazmine asked.

The woman told them where it was and they walked over to the section.

"How much make up you think you're gonna need?" Royalty asked. Since her injuries wasn't on her face, she could get away with it.

"Might get two each of everything just to be safe and for later use. We haven't brought make up in ages." Cindy said as she walked over to where her shades were. She wasn't a girl that loved make up but it didn't mean she didn't wear it from time to time.

"I hope the make up doesn't look over baring when we put it on." Jazmine said worriedly.

"I know but we just gotta blend it up good." Ming sighed.

They spent about five more minutes looking around before paying for their things and walking out.

"Since we're here, we might as well do some retail therapy." Cindy snorted.

"That is my type of therapy." Jazmine giggled.

"Jazmine?"

They all turned to see Jayden standing there shocked.

"Ah shit, here we go again." Royalty mumbled.

"Already?" Jazmine whispered annoyingly. They knew they would at least see one person but damn give them a second to gather their thoughts.

"What you doing here? You never said you was coming back home?" Jayden grinned as he pulled her into a hug completely unaware of how tense she was.

'Bless this poor, clueless boy.' Royalty thought as she shook her head.

"Damn we not here or sum?" Cindy said from behind Jazmine. It's not like she cared, it was just rude how he just said hi to her and no one else.

"Oh shit. My bad. Sup Cindy, Ming, Royalty." He gave a slight waved.

"Jayden." Ming nodded in acknowledgement. "We just gonna be over here." She pointed to three empty seats not far from where the two were standing to give them some time to catch up.

"So, what you doing here?" Jayden asked excitedly once her friends were a good distance away.

Jazmine shrugged. "You know. Some shopping with the girls."

Jayden laughed and slightly tilted his head in the way Jazmine used to think was cute. "You know what I mean JD. What you doing in Woodcrest? You seemed pretty comfy in Chicago, didn't expect you to take a vacation here any time soon."

"Well, I, we." Jazmine strutted, not knowing what to say. Before she could make up an excuse, Jayden's face changed to a very angry one.

"What the fuck happened to your face Jazmine?" Jayden asked sternly.

Her eyes widened. 'He can see it?' She thought as she began to panic. She quickly pulled out her phone and went on her camera. There she could see the slight purple bruise on her cheek poking out over the makeup. 'And this is why I brought more.' She sighed.

"Jazmine. You need to seriously tell me what the fuck happened to your face or I'm going to bug the fuck out."

"Um- I um- fell?" She tried to convince herself to say.

'You're useless Jazmine.' She told herself disappointedly.

He reaches forward to touch her skin but she flinched back. That's when a thought ran across his mind.

"Wait. Was it that Huey nigga? Did he put his hands on you? Is that why you're here, he ran you out of Chicago or you're scared of him so you ran?"

Jazmine looked at him shocked. "What? No! He didn't do this to me."

"Don't lie to me Jazmine. I will fucking kill him if I find out he put his hands on you."

Jazmine had to hold back her laugh. "Jayden. You and I both know he could kill you within seconds. Do you really think it is smart to go up against a gang leader who can fight anyone with his eyes closed?"

"If he hurt you, I don't give a fuck who he is."

"Well it wasn't him. It was someone else."

"Then who?" He asked as he stared down at her.

"Jayden. Just please let it go." Jazmine said as she nervously began to look around her.

"How can I let this go Jazmine if you're hurt like this. I have never seen you with such a big bruise on your face. Why are you defending a man that hurt you?" He asked her hurt.

Jazmine wanted to rub her hands over her face but that would just cause the rest of her makeup to come off. "He didn't hurt us Jayden. I'm serious."

"Us? Those three are hurt too?" Jayden looked over to Jazmine and saw Cindy, Ming and Royalty in their own conversation. They looked fine but so did Jazmine until he got closer. "Jazmine what's going on? And please don't leave me hanging."

Jazmine sighed. She didn't know what to say but she already dug her own grave, she might as well tell him something.

"It wasn't Huey's fault. Someone wanted to get to him and his three friends, who were kinda dating those three, so they used us kind of as bait but they came to recuse us and it was their idea for us to leave Chicago but I don't know how long." Jazmine rushed out.

Jayden looked even more shocked. "So, you mean to tell me that someone kidnapped you because of Huey and then he told you to leave... Jazmine why aren't you as angry as I am right now?"

Jazmine shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe I should be but that's in the past."

"How far in the past?"

"Just over a day."

"Jazmine!" Jayden shouted her name but regretted it when people began to look over. He went back to speak in a quieter tone. "Jazmine, I don't understand you. Why are you defending someone that flipped your life upside down?"

"I don't know. I know I sound crazy, trust me, I have been thinking about it ever since we got to the airport but I can't explain it." She sighed not wanting to continue the conversation.

Jayden saw this and sighed himself. "You're right. I'm sorry JD. I shouldn't be mad at you for what that bastard did to you." Before Jazmine could correct him, he carried on speaking. "I told you about that teaching job and I accepted it and move to Chicago in just over a month. I was looking forward to seeing you there but I guess you're going to be here now."

Jazmine shook her head. "Trust me, the girls and I are not planning on staying here long but I am happy for you." Jazmine smiled sincerely.

Jayden nodded. "Yeah. I don't know why I never text you but I will begin to do so." He pulled out his phone and began texting. "And the first thing I am going to text you is my Woodcrest address that will be my place until a few weeks and my new address in Chicago. You know, for when you wanna stop by and have a chat." He winked at her making her roll her eyes.

"I doubt it but it's good to know. I gotta go now, I know these kids are tired of waiting." Jazmine giggled as they turned to her friends who were messing about.

"You're right you're right. I look forward to hearing from you JD. I'm serious. Nice necklace by the way. Its cute."

"Thanks. Bye Jayden..." She whispered. What she didn't expect for him to lean forward and plant a very light kiss on the same bruised cheek. Jayden winked at her, waved at the shocked girls sitting down and made his way out the mall.

"Girl what the fuck was that?!" Cindy asked her as she run up to Jazmine with Ming and Royalty behind her.

"I don't even know..." They began to walk as Jazmine began to retell their conversation.

"Damn. He really still loves you. How you do that? Might hit up some old niggas while we here?" Royalty joked.

"What's crazy is that he even complemented your necklace not knowing the dude that got it, is the one he wants to try and beat up. Try being the key word." Cindy laughed.

"He doesn't need to know that and I have no idea." Jazmine sighed as she went back to Royalty's question. "I mean, it was just high school. We're adults now but forget about me and let's do some shopping for tonight."

"Don't have to tell me twice." Said Ming before dragging the girls into one of the many clothing stores.

Jazmine was enjoying her time shopping but she couldn't help but think back to the time her and Jayden spent together back in school.

* * *

_10 years ago_

_15-year-old Jazmine had just started her Sophomore year of high school and was excited. She couldn't wait to join the cheerleading team. For some reason, the school didn't allow Freshmen's to join in any team sports until their second year which everyone felt was stupid._

"_Ay yo Jazzy!" Cindy called out to her friend as she stood by her locker with Ming._

_Jazmine skipped over and pulled them into an unexpected tight hug._

"_Damn girl. I wanna breath." Ming struggled to say making Jazmine finally realise them._

"_I'm sorry! I'm just so excited for try outs!"_

"_We can tell."_

"_Well it's about time that they let the one and only McFearsome on the courts. I think it's a bunch of bullshit that you have to be a Sophomore to join a team. This is why they lost the tournament last year because they didn't have this bitch on their team. They finally get to watch me break some bitches ankles as I dodge in and out of their shits. Shooting my perfect lay ups and all" Cindy gloated about her skills and she pretends to do a lay-up as they walked down the hallway._

"_At least you're happy. There's no kickball team here." Ming said annoyingly._

_Jazmine's smile still didn't leave her face. "Maybe you can join cheerleading or basketball with one of us. Oh! What about soccer?! It's like kickball in a way."_

_Ming shrugged. "I guess I can try it."_

_Jazmine squealed. "This is going to be so awesome!"_

_Before the girls could response, a group of boys walked past the girls._

"_Hey Jazmine." The one in the front winked and smiled while his friends just smiled at Cindy and Ming._

_It all seemed to happen in slow motion for Jazmine. She locked eyes with the boy as he walked past her and said her name so smoothly._

_Once the eye contact was broken, Cindy and Ming laughed. "Damn Jazzy. You got Jayden on you and you didn't say anything to him. Royalty would be disappointed that you didn't take your shot when you had the chance." Cindy shook her head._

_From when they met Royalty, they realised that she had enough confidence for each one and then some. They didn't know how she did it but she just did it naturally, she didn't care what anyone had to say. Even though she was the youngest, she was beginning to be boy crazy so when it came to talking to boys, she encouraged the girls (mainly Jazmine) to go for it._

"_Yeah she would have dragged his ass back so you could talk, but Jayden! I hear he could easily become captain of the football team and if, no, when you become the captain of the cheer team, it would be the most cliché but perfect match. I can feel the romcom writers having a field day with this." Ming smirked._

_Jazmine began to blush furiously. "Guuuyyyyssss. Stop it."_

_Ming and Cindy ignored her. "I bet that they will go out by the end of the year." Cindy smirked while Jazmine was shocked._

"_I bet new years." Ming mirrored her smirk as she shook Cindy's hands. "Loser has to eat whatever sandwich the win makes._

"_Bet."_

"_Bet."_

_Jazmine shook her head. "I can't believe you two. I am so not ready for dating." Jazmine said with a blush still on her face._

"_Jazzy we not forcing you to date but you can explore. I mean everyone around here knows how sexy you have become with those developed breast and hips of yours. These flat girls haven't seen anything like you around here."_

"_That's not nice Cynthia." Jazmine giggled when she saw Cindy's face drop at her full name._

"_But Cynthia," Ming teased. "Is right. You will be going out soon. I can feel it in my toes."_

"_You guys are really crazy but I love you the same way."_

"_And soon you will be loving Jayden the same way."_

_Jazmine's mouth dropped open while Cindy and Ming laughed at her before finally reaching their class just as the bell rang. Little did Jazmine know, they were right._

* * *

_9 months later_

"_Jayyyddeeen! You so stupid." Jazmine giggled._

_Ming and Cindy lost the bet. The two began to date a month before Cindy's predicted time which meant they both lost the bet and Jazmine served them with a random sandwich. Royalty was excited but was upset she didn't get in on the bet because her prediction was right. There were times where they really thought she could do voodoo._

_It was currently May and they had been dating for 7 months now and everything was going well. Cheerleading and football were going great and there were talks of the two become captains next year which made people label them as the power couple. He treated her like a princess and spoiled her even though she already had her parents spoiling her. He would randomly give her single roses and leave them in her locker or bring her favourite snacks when she was on her period. Jayden was the sweetest boy she had ever met._

_They were currently at his house on a Saturday afternoon. His parents were out and took his siblings with them so they had the house to themselves. They were on his bed, watching a movie when he started tickling her because she reached for her phone._

"_La mia bella ragazza, watch the movie. Don't worry about your phone." He whispered in her ear as he pulled her closer to his body._

_Jazmine shivered as he spoke Italian to her. Four months into the relationship, he began to call her that which meant 'my beautiful girl' (or he would call her JD in public) and she would swoon each and every time the words left his lips._

"_I was just checking on the girls since we're going to that party later." Jazmine told him as she turned around to face him, still in his arms._

"_Is a party really more important than your fidanzato?" He asked as he lightly kissed her lips._

"_Depends if there are cute boys there." She smiled cheekily as she kissed him back._

"_I swear JD I will strap you down to this very bed and not let you go."_

"_I'll love to see you try."_

"_You asked for it." Jayden grabbed Jazmine's arms and got on top of her making her breath catch in her throat. He leaned down and gave her a sweet kiss and was about to pull away when he felt her legs hook around his waist and pull him in closer. "Damn, I didn't know it was like that JD." He struggled to say as her lips attacked his._

_Something came over Jazmine. She was ready. It was weird for her to think but she was. She wanted him. She was ready for him._

"_I want you." She simply said as she looked up at him through her long lashes._

"_You already have me bambino." He whispered and pecked her lips._

"_I mean... in the other way." Her cheeks became red as she did her best to hint what she meant. She couldn't bring herself to say it out loud. She moved her eyes from his face to their lower body until he caught on._

_Jayden was shocked. "Oh you mean... sex?"_

_The blush just grew even more. "Yes, sex."_

"_Are you sure? I won't force you to do anything you don't want to do."_

"_I know you won't. I want this."_

_Jazmine pulled him down and gave him a sweet and slow kiss before reaching for his shirt to begin to strip. They had done other things besides sex so they knew what each other looked like naked but this was different._

_He reached over to his bedside table to pull out a condom and swiftly put it on. He got himself in the position and looked down at Jazmine._

"_Are you 100% certain you want to do this? We don't have to-"_

_Jazmine cut him off by giving him a kiss. "I'm ready."_

_The two words made Jayden breath out heavy. He got himself ready and slowly pushed his way in._

"_Hsssss." Jazmine hissed as pain flowed throughout her body. It was the most painful thing she has ever felt. "Wait!" She shouted as tears slide down her face._

"_You ok JD?" Jayden asked worriedly. He had heard his friends talk about when they had sex, the girls cried but it was scarier in real life. He thought he did something wrong. He didn't want Jazmine to be in pain._

"_Yeah yeah I'm fine. Keep going..." Jazmine squeezed her eyes shut as Jayden began to move inside her slowly. After a few minutes, she felt as if she had adjusted to this new feeling. "Faster."_

_Jayden heard her and did as she asked. They continued for the next hour before she left with a slight limp which the girls later teased._

_This was the first of many times the two would have sex before they broke up a year later. It was a new experience for Jazmine that allowed her to feel more comfortable in her skin which she had not choice but to thank Jayden for helping her with it._

* * *

Present

They always say you never forget your first and Jazmine never did. She has had sex with other men but she had yet to find one that she could connect with fully like she did with Jayden. She never got the chance to with Huey and she felt as if she was getting close. She guessed she would never get that chance again.

"Ay Jazzy you good?" Cindy asked her friend that was spaced out.

"Yeah just thinking about some things." She answered.

Ming walked over to the two. "Well, let's get our stuff and go. I'm hungry."

"Don't have to tell me twice!" They heard Royalty out of nowhere as she went to pay for the clothes she picked up. The three laughed at her before doing the same.

* * *

Later that night, the girls walked into the strip club they had heard about and it was completely different from The Blue Moon.

There were mainly middle-aged white men in suit and ties with a few younger boys here and there.

"It's like every nigga in Wall Street found their way here." Royalty said as they walked over to the bar. She had on a short, black, long sleeved dress and paired it with some silver heels. She only wore this dress to cover her injuries which she prayed would heal soon because the routine or cleaning them and taking pills was beginning to become irritating.

"I hear that." Ming muttered as she looked around the room. She wore a lace bodysuit, a red, leather skirt and black heels.

Cindy looked at the girl on the stage and began to shout. "Oh hell no. What the fuck is she doing? You're supposed to move your hips bitch!" Cindy decided to wear black cycling shorts with a white crop top and some designer shoes.

"Cindy! Don't be so mean so early." Jazmine lectured her as she couldn't help herself but to laugh. Jazmine had a black shirt dress with a pair of white heels.

They all had on a good amount of makeup on to cover their injuries but not too much that it over powered their face. They still looked good.

"I wonder who owns this place." Royalty said. They could tell whoever it was already had money because the interior was expensive, it was just that the girls lacked excitement.

"Let's find out." Cindy turned to the woman at the bar. "Hey, miss bartender. Where is your manager?"

The brunette didn't look up from her phone as she pointed to the far end of the room. "They're in there."

The girls looked at each other as a way of silently asking if she really did what she did.

"We would say thank you but fuck you instead." Royalty smirked as she saw the woman get angry at what she said and Jazmine had to quickly pull her away.

Ming shook her head. "At this point, you two gonna have us fighting bitches left right and centre."

"Good thing you know how to fight then." Cindy smirked as her and Royalty high fived.

"Come on guys." Jazmine sighed as she stepped up to the door and knocked.

"Come in!" They heard someone say from behind the door.

They opened the door and saw a blonde and ginger doing what looked like a line of cocaine.

"Yes! How can I help you?" The red head asked as he sat up.

"You have got to be fucking kidding me." Ming said out loud as she looked at the two.

"Ed? Rummy?" Jazmine said in shock.

"Damn! Jazmine, Cindy, Royalty and Ming! That cannot be you!" Rummy said in the exact amount of shock.

"Yeah it can't be. Y'all too damn fine!" Ed added as he whipped his nose.

Jazmine shook his head. "No. It's us."

Ed Wuncler the third and Gin Rummy.

These two ran Woodcrest however they wanted because Ed's family founded the city so they let him get away with anything. Ed was rich and Rummy got in on whatever crazy things Ed would do so he ended up with money too.

They understood they should be in their 30s now but nothing seemed to change from when they were in their 20s.

Ming, Cindy and Jazmine's parents have a good amount of money so they would have to go to the dinners and events they would hold every year for a the rich and uptight people of Woodcrest. Royalty lived with her aunt until she moved back to Jamaica and she followed the girls to Chicago. Her aunt wasn't wealthy so Royalty never had to go to the events but the girls thought it was unfair and would always drag her just so they could suffer together.

One Christmas event, the girls were 13 and 15 and they snuck away which was when they met Ed and Rummy sitting outside smoking weed. Cindy was the first to walk up to them and from then they began talking when they realised the girls were cool. From there, Ed and Rummy would always look out for them but it was mainly Cindy and Royalty that hung out with them. People thought it was weird but Ed and Rummy never tried anything with any of the girls. When they began to smoke and drink, Ed and Rummy were able to supply them with it. They became almost like brothers and sisters until they moved away and lost contact.

"How you girls doing? Been too long. What brings you here?" Rummy asked as he hugged each one of them.

"We just came back yesterday." Cindy grinned.

Ed quickly wiped off the remaining cocaine from the desk. "Word. At least you didn't wait long to hit us up."

"Well we didn't even know you owned this club." Ming commented as she sat on the arm of one the chair Cindy was sitting in.

"Then what brings you here?"

Jazmine sighed. "Well. A lot has changed since we have left Woodcrest... we're dancers now and we were looking for work while we're here."

Ed and Rummy looked at each other shocked.

"For real? You four strippers?" Ed questioned shocked.

"Yeeaahhh. Like we said, a lot has changed." Cindy nodded. "Ming usually does bar and I waitress while the other two dances."

"That's cool. What's your stage names?"

"Emerald. Diamond. Ruby. Sapphire. We call ourselves Gem's. We were the main girls in our club in Chicago." Jazmine said as she pointed to each one of them and did her best to not think about Huey and when they first met.

"That lit as fuck. You smart for them names. You can start today if you want." Rummy shrugged.

"Just like that?" Royalty asked with her eyebrow raised.

"Yeah! You know we always got your back. Anything you need we got you." Ed smirked making them smirked back.

"And this is why you're bro."

"You can go on stage right now if you want."

Jazmine looked shocked. "You're serious?"

Rummy shrugged. "Them hoes be losing customers, they slacking. There are rich fuckers out there and I need their fucking money. We need some juice up in this bitch. Now get your motherfucking asses out there."

The girls laughed at him as they made their way out. Ed and Rummy went over to the DJ booth after the girls told them what song they wanted.

'Please don't let these injuries fuck me up.' Royalty prayed mentally as the stood by the stage.

Ed grabbed the mic and began to speak. "Sup motherfuckers! I have some home girls that will be joining the club so give it for our girls Emerald, Sapphire, Ruby and Diamond, aka Gem's!"

"It's the Speaker Knockerz..." Began to play in the speakers and everyone's attention turned to the stage, curious. Freak Hoe began to play as the four stepped on the stage and all eyes were on them.

The Gem's smirked at each other as they put on their stripper persona and began to dance on the stage, forgetting about their worries for just a few minutes. Within seconds, the floor began to flood with money and some even went to the cash machine to get more out after they wasted it on the other girls. As the first chorus came about, they all looked at each other and nodded. Royalty strolled over to the pole and pulled herself up, ignoring her wounds telling her to get her ass down. As she was half up, Jazmine followed behind, then Ming, then Cindy. The pole was high enough for all four of them to fit on and have enough space for themselves.

All four were doing different kinds of spins on the pole. Cindy legs were hooked around it, Ming straightened her body out by gripping her legs on the pole, Jazmine held on by only one leg sticking out and held on with one hand while Royalty was at the top and had her legs open in the splits while upside down.

Everyone was shocked at what they were doing and more and more money turned up on the stage as time went on. For just a few minutes, the girls were in their element again and it felt refreshing.

The song finished and they all came off the stage and began to collect the money as another song played.

"Daammmnnnn I didn't know y'all did it like that! Did you motherfuckers like that shit?!" Ed shouted on the mic. Every customer began to shout in agreement. "You want them girls back?!" More shouts. "Ite say no more. They will be back so make sure you are too with more money."

The girls quickly collected their money and made their way back to Ed and Rummy's office, ignoring all the jealous looks from the other girls.

"Man what the fuck?! You go Chi-town and learn all that shit? That shit crazy." Ed laughed as he sat in his chair. The girls have never seen the two so excited in so long.

"Well me and Ming definitely had to learn a few shit." Cindy snorted.

"You hoes – I mean girls, have to work at this club. I won't call you hoes because I got love for you." Rummy grinned.

"That's what I like." Royalty laughed.

"Let's see how much we made." Ming said and the girls nodded before pulling out all the tips on the table.

When they finished counting, Jazmine was shocked. "Damn. We made 642 after one little performance."

Ed groaned in frustration. "How the fuck you get so much one time and the record of tips from a stage performance was 700. You motherfuckers can easily make more. Shiittt you might need to train these bitches. No wonder they ended up one of A Pimp Named Slickback's hoe. They better at sucking dick than dancing."

"Slickback really still pimping?" Ming asked.

"Motherfucker ain't stopped."

"That nigga really needs to retire." Royalty shook her head.

"You try telling him that and see if he won't pimp slap your ass into next week." Rummy joked.

"You right you right."

Ed pull out a bottle of Hennessey and they all took a glass as they began to talk about old times when Jazmine felt her phone vibrate. She took it out and saw a new message.

_Jayden: Hey JD. I found something crazy in my shopping bag. Your id! I was wondering if you wanted to come over to get it tonight?_

Jazmine silently gasped as she tapped away on her phone.

_Jazmine: Oh my gosh! Thank you so much, I was panicking when I couldn't find it. Sure, I'll come get it. Won't be long._

_Jayden: Cool. See you soon._

Jazmine locked her phone and stood up. "Turns out Jayden had my id the whole time. It somehow ended up in his bag so I'm going to go get it." She told them as they watched her stand up.

"Alright we will come with-" Ming started to say as they went to stand too but Jazmine cut her off.

"No no its ok. You three stay here and have fun, I'm just going to go and come back. Well go back to the hotel room."

"Are you sure girl? We don't mind coming." Cindy double checked.

"I'm sure." Jazmine nodded.

Rummy was the nicest one out of the two men so offered to drive her to his house which she happily accepted. It didn't take long for Jazmine to get there and saw he lived in a quiet area. She felt odd as she began to have more flashbacks of her and Jayden's relationship.

* * *

"_5\. 6. 7. 8."_

"_Hey Jazmine."_

_Jazmine was at practice with her new cheerleading team that she joined two weeks ago. She was standing and observing the older girls when she heard her name being called. She turned and saw the tall, mixed, football player smiling down at her._

"_Um, hey Jayden." Jazmine shyly walked over to him, trying her best to not think about the other girls who heard him call her._

"_How are you?" He asked her as he stood in front of her in his football jersey. She didn't know this until later into their relationship but he was shitting bricks talking to her. He lost a bet which meant he had to finally talk to Jazmine and it was proven harder than he thought._

"_I'm good, just, you know, cheerleading." Jazmine pointed over her shoulder where the other cheerleaders were and some were looking over at the interaction. "How about you?"_

"_Yeah! Good good. Just, you know, football." He did the same gesture Jazmine did and smiled nervously._

"_Right... um, I think I should get back to prac-"_

"_No! Wait!" Jayden lightly grabbed Jazmine by the hand as she went to turn away. She slowly turned around, looked down at their hands and back up to his face. She hated how good his large hands felt in her tiny ones. "I was wondering if I can take you out on a date this weekend. We can go wherever you want. A nice meal or something like that."_

_Jazmine looked at him shocked. A boy asked her out on a date! Was he for real or was he lying and would run over to his friends laughing at her saying she fell for the prank? Her mind was racing with so many different thoughts, she forgot to even answer his question._

"_Jazmine?" He said her name anxiously. "If you don't want to, I can just go-"_

"_No! I mean. Yes. Yes, I will go on a date with you this weekend and dinner is fine. I will have to ask my parents but yes I would like that."_

_Jayden grinned ear to ear and Jazmine couldn't help but to giggle._

"_Thank fuck! I was scared. I will see you later, I gotta go back for practice before coach chew my head off."_

"_I hear that. Bye."_

"_Bye." Jayden half turned and paused. He spun back around, kissed her on the cheek and then sprinted over to where his team was practicing._

_In shock, Jazmine staggered back to where she was standing before._

"_So, did he ask you out?" One of the cheerleaders ask._

"_I hope not. I wanted to make a move on him." Another said._

"_You're acting like he's the only one on the football team. Jazmine can have him and you can just choose another one."_

"_But he was cute... fine. Lucky Jazmine."_

_Jazmine just ignored them and spent the rest of the day in bliss. Her girls spent about five minutes jumping up and down at the news before rushing to the mall to find her a nice new outfit for her first date._

* * *

_Months later_

_It was the end of summer and Jazmine was feeling worried. All last week, she wouldn't stop vomiting and it wasn't until now that a thought dawned on her. She could be pregnant._

_Her and Jayden were now sexually active and Jazmine didn't take birth control because it didn't make her feel good so the possibility was high even though they did use a condom but you couldn't always rely on that. She was nervous to take a test but she had to. She didn't know if she should tell her friends or even Jayden. Maybe she should. She would need some type of support system because crying in her room while her parents were at the office was not going to work._

_Sighing, she got up from her bed and ran to the store to pick up a pregnancy test. She went to a store she would never go to and hide her face out of embarrassment as she set the two pregnancy tests on the counter._

_Once she got back home, she ran to her bathroom and sat on the floor, just looking at the plastic bag. This was scary as hell. She didn't know what to do. She never thought she would be one of those girls that would need to be taking a pregnancy test at a young age because she enjoyed having orgasms too much._

_Jazmine felt a tear fall down her face. She didn't want to be alone._

_She pulled her phone and sent a simple text._

_10 minutes later, she heard a knock at the door and went to open._

"_Are you ok Jazzy?"_

"_You ok JD?"_

_In came her best friends and boyfriend all with pure worry written all over their face. Their concern made Jazmine tear up automatically._

"_Oh Jazzy. What's wrong?" Royalty asked as they all gave her a group hug._

"_I brought a pregnancy test." Jazmine managed to say through the tears. Her eyes were closed so she couldn't see the shocked looks of the girls and Jayden suddenly become extremely pale._

"_Um. Have you taken it?" Ming asked as they stepped apart._

_Jazmine shook her head. "I was too scared."_

_Cindy punched Jayden hard in the arm which made him wince and rub his arm in pain. Despite being hit with boys twice his size in a game of football, Cindy still had a strong punch that stung him. "You couldn't use a condom or some shit dumbass. Look what you got our girl going through."_

"_Ow Cynthia."_

"_Don't call me that. At this point, we are no longer acquaintances so I wouldn't mind fucking you up." Cindy threatened him._

"_Guys please." Jazmine sighed. They turned to her and looked at her. She really looked a mess. "I text you all over so we can do the results together. I couldn't decide who I wanted over so I got you all."_

"_Ok. Let's get this test done. No point in crying if we don't know the results." Royalty shrugged._

_They all made their way to her room and waited for her to take the test. They waited and waited until the test came back._

_Positive._

_Jazmine was pregnant._

_But that's not how this story ended._

_After building up the courage to go to the doctors a few days later, she discorded she had a missed miscarriage. This was when the baby has stopped growing or died but there are no symptoms. Jazmine was heartbroken._

_Yes, she wasn't ready to be a mother but the thought of losing a child was dauting and she was upset for days. Those few days before the appointment was enough for her to mentally prepare herself the best she could with being a teen mom. She thought about everything that would change and how they would tell their parents after the doctors but they never got the chance to tell them. Jayden was there for her the whole time and comforted her and promised to be more careful when they had sex, which they did after. The girls were there to support her and helped her get through it also. It was the scariest moment of her life and it caused her to become more mature._

_After that day, Jayden and Jazmine became close until they broke up. They never really talked about that situation after it happened and Jazmine was sort of glad. The memories were too painful for her to relive._

* * *

Present

Jazmine took a deep breath as she stood in front of his door. All these old memories were coming back and she wanted to turn and run away to avoid thinking about it but she was right in front of the door. There was no point in going back to the hotel now when she went all this way to get her id.

She knocked and it was as if he was waiting behind the door because seconds later, the door was open.

"Hey."

"Hey JD. Wanna come in?" Jayden asked as he opened the door a little bit more for her to see inside. There were a lot of boxes.

"Sure." Jazmine said before she could think.

Jayden grinned and moved aside as to let her in and couldn't help but appreciate the cute and short outfit she had on. Once she was inside, he closed his front door behind her.

* * *

**Jayden is baaccck. Is anything going to happen while Jazmine is there? Who knows. AND, I added my lowkey favourite characters, Ed and Rummy. They crazy and I love it.**

**A lot of flashbacks in this chapter. I love doing flashbacks because it lets you know more about the characters and some extra bits that impact the story so I hope you liked the ones I added here.**

**This is the longest chapter I have made so you all best appreciate it and review thank youuuu xx. I was going to split it but it didn't look right when I tried so you are blessed with a nice lengthy chapter. I cherish all reviews, seriously. Its what make me want to to carry on writing sooo lool.**

**BoondocksFever234: Huey gotta be Ghost for a while and he can't be Ghost with Jazmine aroounndd. They had to leave at some point but we will see how and if they find a way to be together again. Who knows.**

**Guest: This girl thanks you for loving this so much that you get that excited when I post another chapter so hopefully you shout and cry again for this chapter loool. Lemm know what you think about it.**

**I have spoken for too long now soo imma end this now.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	28. Chapter 28: Dreams, Mistakes & Kisses

The next day

Royalty flipped over and moaned. Last night her, Cindy and Ming partied like they have never partied before. It had been so long since they just had fun without a care in the world but now her shoulder was killing her. She walked to the bathroom to clean out her wounds.

She started with her stomach since it was easier to handle. Royalty grabbed the disinfectant, poured it onto the cotton pad and began to wipe it. She would have done it lightly but she wasn't no bitch and she wanted it to be healed quicker so settled on gritting her teeth.

"Bomboclaut." She whispered through gritted teeth. She didn't want to scream to have Cindy and Ming run in looking for her.

As she was cleaning her injuries, she had to stop herself from looking in the mirror since she seemed to be pointing out her flaws every chance she got. It also made her feel like Mulan during her 'Reflection song'. She hated how rough she looked. That wasn't her and she was going to make damn sure she didn't stay like this.

Once she was done, she walked back into the room and flopped onto her bed. As she was about to drift back into a dreamless sleep, her eyes shot open. Royalty flipped around and looked at the double bed next to her.

It wasn't touched.

"Shhhiiitttt. Cindy! Ming! Jazzy isn't here!" She shouted as she ran next door.

Where the fuck was Jazmine?

* * *

_Cold._

_That's how she was feeling._

_Jazmine stirred as she slowly opened up her heavy eyes._

'_Huh?' She thought, confused about her surroundings._

_When she took a good look around, she realised she was back in that room again._

_Panicking, she tried to jump up and run but then noticed she was strapped down to the chair, again._

'_No! Not again!' She shouted in her brain. She didn't want to go through. She couldn't go through this._

"_Hello Emerald."_

_Jazmine's head flew up as she heard a sinister voice right in front of her._

"_Ho- how? I escaped from you." She said in disbelief._

_The figure chuckled. "Oh darling... no one escapes from Vladimir... not even your friends..." He pointed to the left of Jazmine and a spotlight came out of nowhere and what she saw made her shriek in horror._

_On the floor was Cindy, Ming and Royalty but they were dead. Throats slit, blood everywhere, white clothes stained with blood all over their bodies. Their eyes were wide open, looking right back at her with no life in them. She wanted to turn her head but it was stuck. It was like he forced her to keep her eyes on the dead bodies. Their eyes were locked._

"_NO! Why...? Let me go! Please..." She begged him._

_Vladimir just chuckled again. "No. You all need to be punished."_

_Jazmine began to cry._

"_Plus, I want you to say hello to someone." Jazmine was finally able to look away from her dead friends' bodies as Vladimir stepped to the side and revealed Huey tied up to a chair. The only difference was that he looked tired and bloody._

"_Huey!" She called out._

_Before Huey could reply back, Vladimir pulled out a knife and held it to his neck. "Ah ah ah. No speaking from you Mr. You've spoken too much. It's time for me to silence you forever."_

_Jazmine watched the man reach into his back and pulled out a gun. Her eyes grew wide._

"_NO!" She screamed but it was as if he didn't hear her because he didn't even flinch._

_Huey's red eyes locked onto Jazmine's green eyes. Hers held tears while his held pain._

"_Jazmine... I lo-"_

_BANG_

"_AAAHHH!" Jazmine screamed as she saw Huey's brains splatter across the floor. His head hung low as the wound began to bleed. He was dead. He died immediately._

_Vladimir wiped some of the blood off his gun as he strolled towards Jazmine who was bawling in her seat._

"Jazmine..."

_He smirked down at her. "It's your time now. I know your friends and boyfriend will be happy to meet you in the afterlife."_

"...Jazmine..."

"_Why are you doing this?" She sobbed but he didn't care and just laughed in her face._

"_Because whores like you don't deserve happiness."_

"Jazmine!"

_Vladimir held up the same gun he used on Huey and held it to her temple. She could feel Huey's blood on the weapon and knew hers was about to mix in with his._

"_Goodnight." Vladimir chuckled as his finger hovered over the trigger._

'_This is it...' Was all Jazmine could think as she came to terms that she was going to die right here right now. 'I'm sorry...'_

_She closed her eyes and-_

* * *

"Jazmine!"

"AHHH!"

Jazmine shot up panting and sweating.

'It was just a dream... just a dream...' She repeatedly told herself as she stared at the wall in front of her. 'Wait. Where the fuck am I?' She slowly turned her head to the left and she stopped breathing.

"Jayden?"

He smirked. "Morning JD."

Jazmine flopped back onto the pillow. 'What happened...?' Her eyes widened. Dreading the answer, she slowly lifted up the sheet to look at herself.

Naked.

'You have got to be kidding me.'

She looked over at Jayden.

Shirtless and also guessing, naked.

She didn't want to believe it but when she moved her legs, she felt soreness around her lower body.

'Yup. I got dick last night. But damn I'm mad as fuck. If I remember correctly his dick game was on point so- wait this is not the time Jazmine. Get back to reality.'

Jazmine cleared her throat. "So, um, by the looks of it, we, um, had sex."

Jayden gave her a lazy smile, making butterflies float in her stomach for a strange reason. "Yeah. From the looks of it, you don't remember. We drank, I mean like, a lot and one thing lead to another."

Now a thing with Jayden was that he could get shit faced drunk and still remember everything he did the next day no matter how big his hangover was so he was lucky enough to remember them having sex while for Jazmine at the moment, it was blank.

"I gotta say, you've gotten better since high school." He half joked.

Jazmine rolled her eyes and back handed him on his hard chest. "You're an idiot you know that." She sighed. "I really came here just for my id."

"Don't worry, I put it in your purse."

"Wow, comforting to know you're going through my purse." She joked.

Jayden let out a single laugh. "You know I ain't no damn thief."

Jazmine had to laugh herself. "I see you been hanging out with more of your black friends. I ain't never heard you speak like that."

"I could say the same for you."

"I lived in Chicago for 5 years. You know my ass was gonna pick something up."

Jayden chuckled as he laid back down. The two stared at the celling in silence for a few seconds before he broke it.

"Do you ever think about what would have happened if we never broke up?" He asked.

Jazmine sighed deeply, not really expecting to have such a deep conversation as soon as she woke up from such a terrible dream. "I would be lying if I said I didn't..."

"You know what I think would have happened." He turned to face her so she did too and he stared deep into her eyes. "I think we would have graduated and gone through college head strong. We would do all the crazy college stuff, experience new things, make new friends. Then graduate again with our dream careers. Maybe even now we would be engaged or even married with a little one on the way."

"Jayden-"

"-You don't have to agree with what I'm saying but this is what I thought JD." Jazmine nodded and let him finish. "I would have treated you like the Queen you are and spoiled you rotten. A house, a car, a big diamond ring that would make your eyes sparkle. Then I will be play with our son James every day."

Jazmine rolled her eyes. "I told you I hated that name. God forbid I name my son that."

"Come on. It's not a bad name."

"It is. It's so basic. My children will never have any type of basic name."

It was Jayden's turn to roll his eyes. "Whatever JD. So you see what I mean. We would be beginning our adulthood good if we never broke up."

"If only life was that simple." Jazmine whispered but he still heard it.

"I know." Jayden decided to ask her something he wanted to ask since she woke up. "You were screaming and fussing in your sleep... want to talk about it?"

Jazmine pulled the covers up closer to her chest and gulped hard. She remembered the dream vividly.

The coldness of the room. The image of her friend's throat slit and all the blood that was covering them. Vladimir's sinister voice laughing at her pathetic please and Huey... him being killed right in front of her eyes and she couldn't save not one of them. She felt useless.

"I was back in the room. The room we stayed in when we got kidnapped." Jazmine began to tell him. She didn't know why she did but she just did. She needed to talk to someone or this would eat her from the inside and she knew Jayden would hang onto every word. "I was strapped to the chair again and I just felt cold. I began to panic and tried to escape but the man that kidnapped us stepped out. He just laughed. He never stopped laughing. It was like he was mocking me for trying to free myself. That's when he told me to look at Cindy, Ming and Royalty. Oh my gosh, my heart shattered." Jazmine took a deep breath as tears began to fall from her eyes and roll down the side of her heads. Jayden was tempted to wipe it away but fought against it and focused on listening to her speak.

"Their throats were slit and covered in blood. They had these icy, dead eyes staring back into my soul but I couldn't turn away, no matter how bad I wanted to. I couldn't. Not until he brought out... Huey." Hearing his name made Jayden angry but he didn't want to dwell on last night too much right now. "He was also tied to the chair also. He looked like someone beat the shit out of him. He tried to talk to me but the kidnapper pulled out a knife and held it to his throat, stopping him. Then the man pulled out the gun and pulled the trigger. I screamed as I watched his brain splatter all over the room before he moved over to me. He was going to kill me too. With the same gun he killed Huey with. With Huey's blood still on it. He held it to my temple as I cried and begged but he didn't care. He didn't waver his decision. He was about to pull the trigger when you woke me up so I guess I should thank you for that." Jazmine let out a humourless laugh as she quickly wiped the tears away.

Jayden was upset. After everything that man put her through, he was still the one thing on her mind. What did he have to do to get him the fuck out of Jazmine's life forever?

"I'm so sorry you had to go through all that. You didn't deserve any of the pain you're experiencing." He told her sincerely.

Jazmine couldn't help it and let out a full-blown cry. She had to sit up so she didn't choke and cried into her hands. Jayden sat up with her and pulled her into a tight hug, scared that she would slip out of his embrace.

"I got you. Let it out." He rubbed her naked back in comfort as she just let all the emotion flow out of her body.

They stayed in that position for about 5 minutes before Jazmine had no more tears left.

"Damn." She sniffed as she sat up and wiped her face. "I know that was nothing like how you thought your morning would go. What time is it anyway?" She asked.

Jayden reached for his phone. "Um 11:26."

Jazmine's eyes widened. "I'm sorry repeat that."

"11:26."

"How?! Shit, where's my phone?" Jazmine began to panic as she searched for her phone.

"What's wrong?" Jayden asked worriedly.

Jazmine found her phone and saw texts and missed calls from her friends. As she sent a text to tell them she was ok, she realised her phone was on silent. She slowly turned her head to Jayden.

"Jayden, why is my phone on silent?"

"You seemed tired so I didn't want anyone to wake you up." He shrugged.

Jazmine took a deep breath to stop her blood pressure from rising. "Jayden. My girls are worried sick because I didn't reply back. I was meant to be back ages ago. I need to go."

Unexpectedly, Jazmine felt a pair of lips on her cheek. "Yeah, I should have known better. I'm sorry."

Jazmine didn't know what to do so she just said the only thing that could get her out of there. "Can you get me an Uber please. I need to get back."

Jayden nodded while Jazmine began to get dressed. She only had the dress on so it wouldn't take her long to get ready. He couldn't help but stare at her amazing figure as she slipped on her clothes.

"Uber nigga!" She shouted when she knew he was staring. He laughed but did as he was told as she tried to make herself look decent and not look like she had a one-night stand.

It didn't take long for the Uber to come and they both stood by his door.

"Thank you for not losing my ID." Jazmine smirked as Jayden chuckled.

Jazmine couldn't deny the charming aura surrounding his shirtless self, just standing there all causal in just tracksuit bottoms in front of her.

"Thank you for an amazing night last night."

She rolled her eyes. "I am just getting some flash backs."

"Well let me know when it all pieces together because I know that shit was bomb as fuck. You'll be back for more, they all do." Jayden said with a high amount of cockiness.

"Whatever. Goodbye Jayden." She waved behind her shoulder as she made her way out of the apartment.

He smirked as he watched her figure disappear down the hall before going back inside. He missed her already. He wished she didn't have to leave.

'I'm so fucking stupid! If I didn't turn off her phone, she properly wouldn't have run off so quick... but at least she opened up to me, that's a start. There's only one problem. Huey. Stupid fucking Huey. Why can't she hate him like she should? Why is he still on her mind?' He questioned himself angrily. He rested his hand on the counter as he stared out of the window as last night's memories flooded his mind.

* * *

_In the early hours of the day_

"_Would you like a drink?" Jayden asked as Jazmine viewed his half empty house._

"_Hm. I feel as if I want to continue my strong drinking."_

_He chuckled. "Coming right up." He went into his drink cabinet and pulled out brown liquor._

'_Damn. I feel bad. I remember brown liquor turned her on.' Jayden shook his head mentally as he poured them both drinks._

"_Oh, you got the good shit I see. Thanks." She commented as she took the glass he held out for her._

"_As always and you're welcome. Cheers." The clinked their glasses together before taking sips. _

_They sat there for about 10 minutes in silence just drinking. They had about 2/3 glasses each before Jayden spoke up. "So, what were you doing to be all dress up like that? I know you love me and all but you don't need to try hard to seduce me." He joked._

_Jazmine backhanded his chest as she took more sips. She was really feeling alcohol today. "Me and the girls went job hunting."_

_Jayden's jaw slightly tightened but he didn't let it show. "Lemme guess, at a club?"_

_Jazmine sighed. "Yes if you must know. The one Ed and Rummy just happened to own."_

_Jayden down the rest of his drink before refilling and taking another sip. "JD, why do you still do this to yourself?"_

"_Do what?"_

"_Make men look at you as a piece of meat rather than an actual woman with goals and dreams." He said softly._

_It was Jazmine's turn to down her drink. "Because I am not in the frame of mind at the moment. When I dropped out of college, my life changed. I didn't see myself going down the path of medicine anymore, it just wasn't for me. I wanted to break free from my parent's intense watch, that's why I went college in Chicago anyway." Jazmine knew the alcohol was getting to her now, she had drunk quiet a lot just before she got there._

"_I'm sorry, it's just that when we left high school, you had all these hopes and dreams. Shit, even from what you and everyone told me about you from when you were at least 10, you dreamed of the world and more. It's just upsetting that I have to see you like this but I know you're strong enough to get through it." Jayden reached forward to caress the cheek that held the bruise, careful not to put too much pressure on it. "You're the strongest person I know la mia bella ragazza,"_

'_Why did he just have to go and say that?' Jazmine thought as she felt herself lean in closer to his lips._

_They moved slow, waiting for one to move back but they didn't._

_Their lips finally touched but they didn't move. As it connected, the years old memories came to them in a second. Their first date, first kiss, first time having sex and all the times after. Everything. They were overwhelmed and they wanted more._

_Jazmine reached behind his head and gripped onto his curly hair to pull him on top of her. Their lips began to move in sync and eagerness. It was fast and heated._

_Jayden was having the time of his life and he could already tell his friend was ready to make an appearance._

_Jazmine's mind was blank. She didn't think or feel, she just did._

"_Off." She said as she slightly parted their rushed kisses and Jayden did just as he was told without any hesitation. He wanted this. He wanted all of this._

_Jazmine hurriedly unbuttoned her shirt but before she could throw it down, he picked her up and walked her into his bedroom. As he did, he moved the kisses from her lips to her neck, kissing and sucking the parts he had accessed to._

'_This is defiantly going to leave a mark.' He thought giddily as he rested their bodies onto the bed._

_Jazmine finally managed to take off her shirt dress and threw it onto the floor and was quick to disregarded her bra._

'_Oh shit are we actually doing this?' Jayden had to quickly as himself as everything moved so quick._

"_Wait wait wait." He stopped her as she gripped onto his hard flesh. "Jazmine are you su-" Jayden got cut off by her lips. "Jaz-"_

"_Shhh." She shushed. Jayden had never seen this dominate side of her and it was defiantly a big turn on so he let her take the lead. Jazmine used her strength to flip them over so she was on top. Her hands ran across his body as she trailed kiss down it at the same time. Jayden looked down at her and was grinning from ear to ear. He finally had her again._

_Just as she reached his waist, she stopped._

"_I'll save that for next time." She smirked as she looked at his dazed face when she climbs back on top of him._

'_Nah, I have waited to damn long for this shit!' Jayden thought. He reached down and pulled down his sweatpants, leaving him exposed._

_Jazmine's smirk got even bigger and she threw off her last item of clothing to the floor. Jayden grabbed a condom out of his draw quickly and slipped it on and now that the two were completely naked, could finally connected in a way they haven't done it years._

"_Damn baby..." Jayden whispered as he entered her._

'_I feel like I am home.' Was all he could think of._

_They moved quick and urgently. He gripped her hips while she switched between holding the headboard and his shoulder._

"_Shiiitt..." She moaned as hit her in the right angle._

_A few more minutes passed of moaning and movements and he was ready._

"_JD... imma bout to- ugh-" Jayden couldn't even finish his sentenced as he finished into the condom. He would have stopped but he wanted Jazmine to finish too. His energy was gone so he went slower but enough for it to still feel good._

"_Oh shit! Hue-!" Jazmine screamed as she reached the end._

_Jayden looked up at her closed eyes. As if it was nothing, she rolled up to the side and what looked like she was already drifting off to sleep._

'_Hold the fuck up. Did she really just call me another dudes name like I didn't lay down the pipe good? Nah nah. I can't fuck with that.' Jayden said frustratedly. He wanted to shake her ass awake but she looked so peaceful sleeping. 'You know what, imma let that shit slide but this is the only time!'_

_The man sighed before getting deeper into his cover. As he did, Jazmine flipped onto her stomach and threw her arm around his waist. Smirking, Jayden pulled her into his arms which she subconsciously snugged into._

_He took a quick glance at her. 'Damn, this woman is doing something to me! I can't even be mad at her for long... I missed this shit.' Was his final thought as he went to sleep with his high school sweetheart in his arms once again._

* * *

Present

Jazmine jumped out the car and sprinted into the hotel. It was already passed 12 and she knew the girls were up and ready to shout at her.

On her way back, she managed to put last night together which caused her to sit at the back of the Uber blushing bright red. The driver must of thought there was something wrong with her. She couldn't believe how easily she slept with Jayden. She never thought she would find her way in his bed again but she did. She couldn't deny how good it felt to have sex again, it had been a long time.

'Should I keep him as a fuck buddy for the time being?' Jazmine shook her head. She couldn't do it. She knew she couldn't string him along just to fulfil her sexual desires, fantasies and needs. It wouldn't be fair to him. Anyone with eyes knew Jayden's feelings had bubbled to the surface again and now that they were older, he was ready for a relationship that would last to old age. Ready to have a child...

Her first and only miscarriage really shook her to the core. She felt as if she wasn't worth of being a mother and would never be able to carry children no matter how many times the doctors told her that she was healthy and could carry children in future. It still scared her. She had the normal guilt any female that has been through that experience went through.

'No, I don't want to think of that.' She said to herself as she got inside the elevator to their floor.

As she stood still, she wondered. Did she really have feelings for Huey if she fell into the bed of the first man to give her attention? She reached up to touch the necklace that he gave her which she still hadn't taken off.

She rolled her eyes. 'Of course you did stupid girl.'

It was true. She did have feelings for Huey and they were growing every time she would talk or look at him. They would text all hours of the day, not that anyone knew. If only their circumstances were better, they could have taken the time to build their relationship. She also felt that she only slept with Jayden because of comfort and familiarity or maybe she still had feelings for him.

It was all too confusing for her to think now.

Sighing she walked into her room only to feel a hand drag her and throw her onto the bed.

"What the fuck?"

She looked up in shock at Royalty, Cindy and Ming standing over her with their arms crossed.

"You best start explaining yourself nigga." Royalty said first.

"How your ass just going to drop off the face of the earth like we didn't get KIDNAPPED the other day?" Cindy asked with anger.

"I was ready to find Rummy and beat his ass if something happened to you." Ming told her.

"I know, I was stupid but... I don't even know how it happened but shit happened." Jazmine shrugged.

"You best tell us everything."

They all crossed their arms and stared at Jazmine waiting for her to confess. She felt claustrophobic but she knew she needed to tell, that's the least she owed them. Plus, she needs to vent.

So she did.

"...I mean shit! Why is it so hard? I loved Jayden but I might love Huey. But we weren't even a couple like what the fuck. Maybe I should move on with Jayden but then he is moving to Chicago. Damn. I guess I should forget about both of them. It's all a mess." Jazmine breathed out as she finished telling her friends about last night's activities and morning thoughts.

"I hear that." Cindy nodded.

"I mean, we're crazy right. We've known them for a few weeks and we already whipped on them. It just doesn't make sense but... they did treat us right when they had us so I can't even be mad at them fully." Ming added.

"Yeah... I'm not evening going to lie, there was one point when I thought I was pregnant with Riley." Royalty confessed.

They all looked at her shocked. "Why didn't you tell us?" Jazmine asked.

"Because it was a false alarm." She shrugged. "I didn't want you all to worry over nothing. Riley was with me when I took the test but everything was cool. I dealt with it and we moved on. Thinking about it, I wonder what would have happened if I was. Maybe it could have been something to keep us there. I know they would have protected us, it just now, sending us away was the best and easiest option for them."

Cindy smirked. "I feel like every day we're going to mention how fucked up we are."

"It's becoming a tradition." Ming nodded. "But shit is about to change ladies. We are going to speak it into existence."

"Yeah and hopefully boy trouble doesn't follow. For now, I'm going to wash this sex smell off me." Jazmine was finally able to stand after being thrown onto the bed by her friends.

"Yaa naasssttyyy." Royalty mocked.

"Shut your ass up!"

The girls all laughed but stopped when they looked at the TV which was showing the news.

"Ay yo Jazzy." Cindy called out to her friend as she didn't take her eyes away from the screen.

"Damn I can't even shower now." Jazmine joked as she stepped out the bathroom and saw her friends staring at the tv. Confused, she walked closer as Ming turned up the volume.

"A shocking discovery today. Eleven girls ranging from the ages of 16 to 24, were all found today in Chicago, scared but safe. They are all victims of kidnapping and forced into sex trafficking which some have been involved in as long as two years. They were discovered in Chicago but are from all over the country: Texas, New York, New Orleans, Los Angeles as well as other places. Parents of these girls have been informed and immediately have begun to make their way to have a tearful reunion with their missing daughters. It is reported that a man by the name of Ghost as well as his people, was who saved them from a location we are not aware of. 'Ghost' is a known gang leader here in Chicago but hasn't been connected to any sex trafficking so this could be him exploring his horizons in other crimes, who knows. All we say is stay safe out there and we wish the best for these young and scared girls to recover from their traumatic experience." The report ended as she stood outside the police station where other news reports stood outside, hoping to find out more information to put on the front page of their articles.

Ming turned back down the volume and they all looked at each other.

"Those are the girls Huey saved when he saved us. He got them back to their families." Jazmine said tearfully. She knew he wouldn't keep them for the same reason Vladimir did but it was still shocking. These girls had been through worse and Huey made sure he took care of all of them while dealing with his own problem. The reporter may not have realised it but Ghost was the good guy in this situation who wouldn't dip his hand into sex trafficking.

"Yeah but that bitch is making them look like the bad guys in this situation like the fuck." Royalty said what Jazmine was thinking frustratedly.

"I'm just glad they are safe from that prick and they didn't get left to die." Cindy crossed her arms.

"This world is fucked." Ming shook her head.

They all sat there reflecting on the information they just learned and knew they had to begin to count their blessings.

"Ok, I am actually going to shower now." Jazmine interrupted the short span of silence to finally rid herself the smell of Jayden and sex.

Things were about to flip whether they were ready for it or not.

* * *

Back in Chicago, a few days ago.

Huey and the boys had just dropped the girls off at the airport and they were on their way back to the warehouse. He felt a vibration from his phone and pulled it out.

_Dad: Come here now._

Huey sighed. Those three words were simply enough to get his ass over there.

"Imma need you to drive to our parents first."

Everyone in the car was pulled out of their thoughts when Huey spoke up.

"Why?" Riley asked, confused.

"Dad just text me. He wants to see us."

"Damn. What you think he gonna say?"

Huey wanted to sigh again but went against it. "Man I don't even know. All I know is that I can't stay long, we got shit to do."

"I hear that man but you know your folks ain't gonna like you wanting to bounce so quick." Caesar told him from the backseat.

"We both know I got shit to handle Caes, I don't have time to sit and relax right now."

"I guess you right. We still need to go see Fire." Hiro said as he pulled up to the Freeman family neighbourhood.

"Yeah yeah. Hopefully this don't take long." Huey said as he pulled up to their parents' house.

"Hiro and I will wait for you to come back." Caesar pattered Huey on the none injured shoulder as they pulled up.

Huey nodded before him and Riley jumped out the car and made their way to the door.

They knocked and waited.

The door slowly opened and their stood their father with an emotionless face. Huey had inherited his whole facial expression. He stepped to the side to let his sons in who walked into the strangely quiet house. His mother was sitting on one of the chairs closets to the door so Huey and Riley sat across from her while their father sat next to his wife.

Not liking the silence, Riley decided to break it. "So, you wanna tell us what you called us here for?"

Their mother raised an eyebrow. "You gotta damn cheek to ask me that. You know how many times I tell you the. Streets. Talk. What is this bullshit I'm hearing now? Kidnapping?! You got them girls kidnapped?!"

Huey had to stop himself from rolling his eyes, not in the mood for anyone today. "They're safe now."

Mackenzie scoffed. "Are you sure about that? They got taken from their jobs, their stripping jobs, so the Russian's obviously know who they are. I told your ass not to be fucking with them girls."

Something strange snapped in Huey's head. His temper was on 10 today.

"I don't want to hear this shit."

Everyone looked at him shocked.

"Excuse me young man." His mother held her mouth open as she looked at her oldest son.

"I don't need to hear a lecture from a situation I already know I fucked up in."

"Me and Aunt Cookie told you how many times at the BBQ so I don't think you do-"

"I do! Trust me I fucking do! Why do you think we're all dirty and bloody? For kicks? Nah, we just got through murdering niggas to save their ass and get them the fuck outta Chicago."

"Huey-" Riley tried to stop his brother from talking as he saw his mother anger start to match Huey's. He reached forward and tried to pull him back.

"Nah fuck that." Huey shrugged off Riley and shoot up from his seat.

"Boy." His father stood up to. He understood his anger but he was taking it out on the wrong people.

"I didn't want to come over here, I have shit to do. This is why I am standing here with two bullet wounds, Hiro's limping and them girls are going to scarred for life mentally and physically. I have so much motherfucking guilt already I don't need your ass adding to it. Where was all this energy about being in a relationship when you started fucking dad-"

SLAP!

The room stood still. No one could believe what Huey said and the slap that ripped across his face from his mother's hand. Huey himself couldn't believe what he said and he instantly regretted it.

"You know the difference between me fucking your mother and you two fucking them girls." Christian stepped up to his oldest child so that he was in the middle of him and his equally angry wife. "While I was fucking your mother, her ass didn't spend a second injured or kidnapped by the many fucking enemies I had this whole motherfucking time. You've known this girl in less time and she now has to watch her back everywhere she goes even when she's not fucking you. So, don't you dare come in this motherfucking house and disrespect the people that gave you life. Remember I was in this same position you were in. Remember 5 years ago when that bullet entered my head? Yeah, I know you remember that. Your mother told me that was the first time she has ever seen your hard ass cry. Hearing that I might not live, I might not walk, I might not talk, I might not be able to do shit, crushed your ass so what did you do? You looked your uncle's dead in the eyes and said: 'I'm going to take my father positions. I am going to be the leader of this gang' and you stood your ground. They warned you about everything but you just shook your head and said you're ready. We told you relationships and this gang life was hard but now that it got hard you wanna act like a bitch ass nigga about it instead of being the strong ass nigga we raised your ass to be. Don't let my ass regret putting you in this position by fucking everything up. We never said you couldn't love, you just gotta be careful when you love."

After Christians lecture, everyone stood frozen. Riley was the only one that didn't have anger running through his body as he was shocked. He has never heard Huey talk to their parents like that or his father talk to him like that. He had no idea how this situation escalated.

What Riley couldn't see was Huey's face crumble. Every word his father said held the same amount of pain the bullets wounds did.

He regretted what he said. They raised him better than that. He disrespected his parents when he had no right to do, no matter how angry he was. It wasn't their fault.

Mackenzie and Christian looked at Huey. They knew he was hurting in more than one way, making them realise how special this Jazmine girl was to get him so riled up like he did but that gave him no right to talk to them the way he did so they made sure he understood that they were his parents.

As mentioned before, Huey unexpectedly stepped up to be the leader of the Panther's when Christian Freeman nearly died. His father was shot in the head. Him, his brothers and Mackenzie were all out shopping for a few things when an unexpected drive by happened, aiming for them. Christian shielded his wife which resulted in a bullet entering the back of his head and out his forehead. Dominic and Mario tried to shot at the culprits but when they heard the scream of their sister in law, they knew the situation was bad. He was awake but losing blood so they rushed him to the hospital where the oldest sibling fell into a coma once he entered the hospital.

When Huey and Riley heard the news, they dropped everything and ran down to the hospital where the doctor told them it was a touch and go situation. He may not live, may not be able to hold his wife and children again, may never tell them he loves them again and that broke Huey. Riley always showed a number of emotions so seeing him cry was nothing new but Huey had always had a hard personality so when he broke down crying with Riley, their mother and uncles were shocked. The family stood their crying until Huey jumped up. His sadness turned to anger and he vowed to kill the ones who hurt his father as well as saying he will be the new leader. Dominic and Mario tried to talk him out of it, telling him to think about it clearly but Huey had already made up his mind. He knew he was the next Freeman to carry the gang.

Huey tracked down the men in two days and slaughtered them which was a shock to many people at how quick he managed to do it.

A week past and Christian woke up from his coma. At first, he found it difficult to talk but with the help of his family, he was back to normal. He was blessed to only have one major problem that was fixed over time. Him and Huey had a long talk about taking leadership of the Panther's and by the end of it, Christian was sure of his decision. He was finally able to step down and let someone else take over so he could enjoy his time with his wife.

That is where Ghost was officially put into everybody's mouth.

"We say this because we love you Huey Percy Freeman and you, Riley Escobar Freeman. We are here to keep you as straight as we can. I am here to give you the reality that not everything in the streets is your life. Those girls weren't in the same shit you do so they got caught in the cross fire. I know you're anger but don't ever fucking disrespect me the way you did ever again. I am your mother. If you do, expect another slap across your face. That goes for you too Riley." Mackenzie told her boys as she stepped out of Christian's shadow so she could have a good view of them both.

Huey gulped hard. This was not how this was meant to go. If only he learned to keep his mouth close and not take it out on the people who were the first ones to tell him they loved him. It seemed as if he could only hurt the ones he loved. Unexpectedly, Huey began to tear up. He was drained and could no longer hold onto his emotions. Seeing this, Mackenzie pulled Huey down to sit next to her and put his head on her shoulder.

"Don't think that. I know what you're thinking. You're not a bad person baby. We all make mistakes and I know you will learn from it. You just got to be the strong man we raised you to be." She held her arm out for Riley to join which he happily did. "Let me remind you of something. We are motherfucking Freeman's. Our name means something. Those motherfuckers ain't got shit on us so I want you boys to carry the name with pride and defend your shit. I know your father is thinking the same thing and I know you are more than capable of handling your shit. So go out there and do what you gotta do." Mackenzie told her sons.

Christian looked at her surprised, he thought he would have to do the pep talk but it seemed as if she had it on lock.

"When did my wife become such a bad ass?" He joked.

Mackenzie smirked, showing off her dimples. "Since the day I was motherfucking born nigga."

He shook his head before getting serious again. "Huey. Riley. Or should I say Ghost and Reezy. I hear you have business to do so I suggest you get to it."

Huey and Riley nodded and stood up with their mother following. They all shared a needed group up before pulling away.

"I suggest you keep your eyes and ears open. They play dirty and I don't want any more people I care for hurt." Huey told his parents.

Christian smirked. "You know I keep that thing on me." He lifted his top to show the gun resting on his hip.

"I hear that." Riley mirrored the same action of his father and showed off his gun. "Ite we gotta bounce bro."

"Yeah, I will see you all later... I'm sorry again." Huey sighed.

Mackenzie gave them both kisses on the cheek. "I love you too so much. Be safe... and make them pay."

Huey smirked. "Trust me. They will."

With that, the siblings walked out and left their parents' house.

"You know they loved them girls right." Christian said once they saw their car speeding down the street.

She sighed. "I know. That's why I made sure I drilled it into their heads. Riley was out here acting like a man whore but that Royalty girl was the only one on that kept him level. He actually showed his genuine sweet side rather than his gang banger side to get girls swooning at his 'bad boy' attitude. Then Huey... he never looked at Raven the way he looked at Jazmine and she was his only serious relationship. He looked calm and happier... am I a bad mother?" She suddenly questioned herself.

Her husband looked at her strange. "Don't even start with that nonsense. You will and never been a bad mother. You do what you gotta do to protect them the best you can do in this world. Believe it or not, they get their smartness from you."

He smirked while she pushed him playfully.

"I hate you."

"No, you don't."

"Yes, I do."

"Stop playing girl." Christian suddenly lifted Mackenzie and began to give her a sweet kiss. Despite having two grown kids, they still acted like teens themselves. "How 'bout we take this argument upstairs?"

"No."

"Too late!" He said as he began to walk to their bedroom. All Mackenzie could do was laugh and prepare herself for an amazing adventure.

* * *

"Let's go."

Immediately after leaving the Freeman's home, the four made their way to see a man called Fire on very important business.

They walked into a car garage where there were a few people working on cars. When Huey, Riley, Hiro and Caesar all walked in, everyone turned to watch them walk into the back, know exactly what they were here for.

Huey walked straight ahead with purpose despite all the stares. It has been a while since he had been at this location.

"Damn. Niggas can't even do business in peace anymore." Riley commented as he looked at all the other workers. He wanted to screw them all but he didn't feel like fighting right now.

"Cool off Reezy." Hiro told his friend.

"Nigga I am cool damn."

They finally reached a door that was blocked by a large man.

Huey had to slightly look up at him.

"I'm here to see Fire."

The man looked at Huey and the people behind him.

Hold in his annoyance, Huey lifted his arms to let the man search him. As he did, he pulled out his gun and two daggers. The man raised an eyebrow at him.

"You know who I am." Huey simply told him.

The other three got search, much to Riley's disgust, before walking inside the room, bare.

"Well well well. Look who found their way back to these parts of town. It's nice to see you Ghost. I guess that's why they call you Ghost huh." The man chuckled.

In front of them sat a muscular, dark skin man who wore a large smirk on his face.

"Fire." Huey greeted back.

"It's lovely to see you, as well as Reezy, HO and MC. What do I owe the pleasure of having all four of you here at once?"

"We need equipment."

"Well you've come to the right place." He smirked.

The man who goes by the name of Fire, is what people would call an arms dealer. Needed a gun, he had it. Assault rifles, submachine, pistols, snipers, all of that. He even had ammo, and all types of grenades. The car garage was just a good way to keep his business as hidden as possible.

"What do you need, friend?" He stood and walked in front of his desk to lean on it.

"Grenades, including smoke and flash ones, submachines, ammo, sniper and a few pistols." Huey listed off.

Fire whistled. "So this war is real. The streets have been talking. I guess I should be hearing from you soon again."

"I guess that's right."

"Hm ok." He picked up a remote, pointed it to the wall and pressed a button. The wall then began to turn in and a row of gun spun into view.

"I love that shit every time." Riley smirked.

"Same. You know I was always the one for flare... you got your bag?" He asked.

Hiro and Caesar stepped forward and handed him the large black bags.

"Perfect." Fire went over and began filling up the bags. "So word on the street is that you got yourself some Wifey's."

They all got tense.

"You can't believe everything the streets say." Caesar told him.

"Oh, but I do." He smirked. "We all know when the streets talk, 93% of the time, the shit they talk is truth."

"Well maybe we got lucky with being the 7% this time." Hiro shrugged.

Fire laughed. "I see what you're play at. I respect that."

"Whatever nigga. These streets need to mind their motherfucking business sometimes. All on a niggas dick and shit." Riley crossed his arms.

"Welp from what I heard, that wasn't the only thing on your dick."

Riley anger flared. "Whatchu say nigga?!"

Huey stepped in front of his brother. "Reezy. Cool off."

"Man I'm not a motherfucking baby. Everyone telling me to cool off. Shiiittt. A nigga is chill. Stop saying cool off before I actually get heated. Shit man."

Huey rolled his eyes as Fire walked over with the full bags. Him and Caesar checked through to make sure they had everything they asked for.

"Price?"

"2 grand."

Huey raised an eyebrow at him.

"Nigga this is standard shit. Those ain't your prices."

Fire shrugged as he popped a gum in his mouth. "Prices are rising. Plus, you seem pretty desperate. These going to have hella bodies on it so I might as well get my money's worth."

Huey took a deep breath. "1600."

"1900."

"1750."

Fire thought for it for a second. He knew that was the best he was going to get out of Huey. "Deal."

Hiro pulled out the money and began counting before handing it to Fire who counted it himself.

Once he was sure he had the right amount, he smiled at them all and held out his hand.

"Pleasure doing business with you. I will see you soon."

Huey nodded and shook his hand before picking up one bag while Riley took the other. They walked out, collected their weapons from the large man and made their way to their warehouse.

"Damn a nigga tired." Caesar said from the back seat.

The last few hours have been draining on them. The only time they could rest was right after they got shot at in front of the club because Huey was still passed out. They had yet to rest properly.

"We just got one more thing to do and then we can rest." Huey told hm from the passenger seat.

Riley kissed his teeth, a habit he picked up from Royalty. "I need a massage or some shit. Body sore as fuck. I don't know how you two are doing it and you got shot."

"Trust me. My leg has been throbbing like crazy since we left the airport." Hiro told him as he continued to drive.

"Should have let one of us drive." Caesar said to him.

Hiro shook his head. "Nah. We all know I am the best driver here."

"Hell no. I am ten times better than you!"

"Sure, that's why you're in the backseat."

Caesar went quiet while Riley laughed. "You know I sit here cuz Huey here."

"Don't drag me into this."

Hiro chuckled as he looked at Caesar's defeated face. "It's ok bro. It's ok."

"Whatever. Just get us back already." Caesar said in defeat as he crossed his arms. Hiro shook his head at his friend and then went back to paying attention to the road.

* * *

Not long later, they were back at the warehouse and people were busy. They were rushing around doing different things and Huey was proud to see it. This was a business.

"Hey MC. The new flavour is ready." One of the women came up to him and handed him the small bag that had the Panther logo (the head of a Panther) on it. He opened it and breathed it in.

"Hmm yes. This is going to be a hit. Continue growing and get this packaged and out in the streets asap. Let the dealers know we got product which is going to be high in demand." Caesar instructed her, she nodded and raced off to who knows where.

Huey handed the bag to Riley. "MC, go check on product. HO, check on the money and Reezy, handle weapons. Make sure everyone is at least strapped with something."

They nodded and made their way to where they needed to be. Huey walked to the infirmary where he heard laughter.

He knocked and walked in.

"Hey Ghost." Faith greeted.

"Hello Faith. Thank you for your work earlier."

"No problem. It's my job."

"Can I talk to Midnight alone for a few minutes? I'm sure Dee is somewhere around here." If it wasn't for her dark skin, they would have seen her blushing.

"Um yeah ok. I'll talk to you later Midnight." She gave the girl a slight hug.

"Alright. Thank you so much for taking care of me." Midnight smiled as she hugged back the best she could.

Once she left, Huey took the chair she was once sitting in.

"How you feeling?" He asked.

"As good as I can get with a bruised, nearly fractured rib." She shrugged. "You?"

"Surviving."

"They gone?" Huey nodded. "Do you know where?" He shook his head. "Damn. We just started to get along too."

"Never thought I would hear that come out from you." Huey smirked.

Raven smirked back. "I guess being locked in a room for about 12 hours makes a bitch crazy." She laughed a little, careful not to hurt her ribs too much. "You know this is the most I have been injured in a very long time. Last time was when we were 15, remember."

Huey sighed. "Yeah I remember... that's when we first kissed."

* * *

_10 years ago_

"_Huey! Do you have my bag?"_

"_Yes."_

_15-year-old Huey and Raven were making their way-out of school. It was the first day of spring break and she was excited._

"_What plans do you have for the holiday?" Raven asked._

_Huey shrugged. "I don't know. Parents are working. You?"_

"_Same. I guess we're gonna have to find some trouble to get into to entertain ourselves." She lightly shoved him as they walked down the street home._

"_You sound like Riley."_

_She rolled her eyes. "Man fuck Riley. I know he's your brother and all but he's a piece of shit as well as annoying as fuck."_

"_I would have used worse words to describe him." Huey told her truthful as he shook his head. The 13-year-old was a handful._

"_Anyway. I want you to train me properly this time. Dad has been talking about doing more lessons since the streets are getting a bit heavy again so he wants to make sure I'm ready. Like, I want you to actually try and hurt me." Raven saw Huey raise an eyebrow as they turned a corner._

"_You know I won't hit you with full force."_

"_And why is that?" She questioned._

"_Because I might seriously hurt you." He stated to her._

_She stopped and crossed her arms in annoyance. "Are you calling me weak?"_

"_No-"_

"_What I hear is you're calling me weak Freeman and I don't appreciate it."_

"_Raven just calm do-"_

"_I will race you to the top of that tree. We'll see who can get up there first." Raven challenged her friend._

_Huey sighed. Knowing she wouldn't give up until he said yes._

"_Fine."_

_Raven smirked. Her challenge was accepted._

"_On your marks... get set... Go!"_

_The two raced to the tree and began to climb as quickly and skilfully as they could. Within a few seconds, Huey was sitting on the thick branch and a few short moments later, Raven was sitting there too._

"_No far. You cheated." She breathed out in frustration. She lost her own challenge. How does that even work?_

"_I did not cheat Raven."_

"_Yes you did Huey."_

"_No I didn't."_

"_Yes, you did."_

"_No."_

"_Yes!"_

_The held an intense gaze long enough that they didn't realise how close they had become._

'_Damn he smells so good...'_

'_She looks cute...'_

_They thought. They moved a few more inches before their lips connected lightly._

_Their first kiss._

_It felt weird but comfortable._

_They couldn't believe they were kissing their best friend! They knew each other from birth._

_Huey pulled away first and slowly opened his eyes. He actually was brave enough to kiss a girl. Did he like her or was it just in the moment? Nah, he was not one to kiss random girls and she wasn't not random._

"_Um. I um. Sorry." He apologised._

"_No no. Don't apologise... I actually kinda liked it." She lightly blushed from embarrassment._

'_This could not get anymore worse.' She thought to herself._

_She spoke too soon._

_A territorial squirrel jumped out of nowhere and landed in Raven's hair._

"_Ahhhhhhhhhh!" She screamed. Huey's eyes grew wide as he watched her panic and thrash around._

_Suddenly, she jumped off the branch without realising but when Huey tried to catch her, she slipped through his fingers._

"_Ahhhhhhhhhhh-!"_

_Raven went crashing to the ground._

"_Raven!" Huey shouted her name with wide eyes. Quickly and safely, he climbed down the tree and raced to her. "Are you ok?" He asked stupidly._

"_Hmmmm. My arm." She moaned in pain. She rolled on her back and lifted her arm. It was defiantly broken._

"_Shit. Um. I'll call your dad to come pick us up ok. Just relax." Huey pulled out his phone and began to dial his number._

_Raven nodded and cradled her arm. This was not how she pictured her first kiss ending._

* * *

"Yeah, that was terrible. First kiss and first broken bone in the space of 1 minute. We love to see it." Raven said sarcastically.

"Maybe if your pride wasn't so high, you wouldn't have spent the whole of your spring break in a cast." He smirked.

"Maybe if you didn't call me weak, I wouldn't have had to spend the whole of my spring break in a cast."

Huey rolled her eyes. "No I didn't."

"You really did Huey. Like, indirectly."

"Can we not start this again?" He sighed.

Raven smirked. "Why? You gonna kiss me again."

Huey scrunched his eyebrows together. "You kissed me."

"I have no energy to carry this on so let's just say we kissed each other."

"Whatever and I wouldn't have kissed you. The feelings aren't the same. I still have love for you but not in that way." He told her seriously.

She nodded. "I know. As much as it didn't seem like it in the last few weeks but I moved on too but you know, girls are not the best humans to be around."

"I ain't no saint." Huey snorted.

"I know but still. Got a business to protect."

Huey nodded. "I hear that... thank you. For always having my back. Seriously. You were the first person to realise the mistakes I was making and I should have seen it before."

Raven shrugged. "I'm your friend. That's what I do, no matter how shitty you've been to me." She smirked at his eyes roll.

"I said sorry once. That's all you're getting out of me." Huey went to stand. "Oh right, I always want to give you take control of The Blue Moon. You more than deserve it and you handle Empire well."

Raven looked at him shocked.

"Seriously?"

"Dead ass."

She thought about it for a second. "I could deal with that. It shouldn't be that hard to run a strip club, right?" She questioned.

Huey shrugged. "That's your problem now. Plus, this keeps you out of the action for as long as you're injured. I want you fully healed. No half shit. I need one of my best soldiers fight and ready for when the big fight comes."

Raven became angry. "Trust me. I want to be ready for that fight. I got a bitch named Natasha to fuck up."

"I'm guessing she's the one that fucked up your ribs." He added together.

"Yup. And hurt the other girls. I would like to kick her down to size... by taking out her knee caps of course." She smiled innocently causing Huey to shake his head.

"Let me know if you need a ride home. I'll see you later Midnight."

"Later Ghost." She waved as he walked out the room. Seeing as she was still tired, she decided to rest her eyes for a bit longer. She needed the sleep.

* * *

Later on in the late evening, Robert Freeman was drinking his favourite orange juice.

"Hmm. Them boys actually got me something good this year. Great way to end the day." He said to himself as he took a sip of the freshly squeezed juice.

Ding dong.

"Who the hell is at my door at this time?" He thought angrily as he set his glass back on the table in front of the tv. He walked over to the door and swung the door open. "What the hell do you- oh. Hello cutie pie."

The woman smiled sweetly. "Hello, are you Robert Freeman by any chance."

The man grinned. "Why yes, yes I am. How can I help you?" He asked as he looked at the beautiful woman in front of him.

"That's great. My names Natasha... and I have a message for your grandsons." She smirked evilly.

Roberts smile instantly dropped and he began to panic. With wide eyes, he tried to slam the door shut but two men burst through the door. Robert began to scream but one of them was quick to slap tape over his mouth as they dragged him into the living room. He tried his best to fight but he was much weaker than the younger people.

Natasha chuckled as she slipped on her favourite weapon: her brass knuckle.

"Time to have some fun."

She kicked the door shut and walked into the living room, ready to send a message while the glass of orange juice was left untouched.

* * *

**...Happy New Year! I am so sorry I took so long, I have just been very very very lazy. I haven't even been focused on my education which is to get back into the swing of things. Anyway I hoped you enojoyed this chapter after I left you all hanging for a very long time lool. Again, sorry.**

**Shout out too all you that reviewed. I already messaged you guys so thank you. Sorry to the guest that didn't want Jazmine and Jayden to hook up... whoops? You all seem to like Jyaden which is crazy. He is a very charming young man I tell you that.**

**To Honestly (since I could directly reply to you): Thank you for your long ass review. I love to see it. I accept your apology lool I'm sorry but I get what you mean as a writer and all. The detail you put in your review is what I need. Trust me, your questions will be answered soon just gotta let it flow for a while. I can tell you this a time jump will happen, just not years. Weather it be days, weeks or months, you'll have to see. Everything you suggested, I take into account, like with Chel29 (hey girl), she suggested Jazmine holding a dance class which I added in and it fit nicely into the story. I saw the Jennifer Lewis thing as well and that would be the best direction to go in if they had to sadly let go of the Grandad. Maybe have the pree recorded things as flashbacks. Who knows. but the rest of the characters (mainly Jazmine) NEED to be involved.**

**BTW. I finally joined Wattpad. You can find me under the same name. I posted on Boondocks chapter and another one is coming soon, just finishing it up so if you would like, you can head over there. The story isn't the same. Different age from this and T&T, different plot. Idk how I'm going to keep up but we move.**

**Well hopefully I don't take too long with the next chapter (I say that but it will prob be a month since school is about to kill me, sorry) but I can't wait to hear what you think.**

**Until Next Time**

**-TBG**


	29. Chapter 29: Nightmares & Babies

"_Baby!"_

_Huey stirred as he woke up from his bed. As he opened his eyes, he looked around confused. The room was different._

_It was brighter._

_His room was black and grey but now it was blue and white._

'_Whose house am I in?' He questioned himself._

_He stepped out the bed and walked over to the mirror. He only had on tracksuit bottoms. His tattoos were still there and his afro as well as his scars. What else had changed?_

"_Huey! Quick!" He heard the voice call again._

_He suddenly recognised the voice._

_He raced out the room, paused to be aware that he was now in a house before charging down the steps._

"_In here!"_

_Huey followed the voice into the living room._

"_Jazmine?" Huey said out loud. What was she doing here? Didn't she leave Chicago?_

_Jazmine giggled. "Why are you looking at me like you don't know me? Look!" She pulled him in front of the couch and was in for another surprise._

_A baby._

"_Dada."_

'_What the actual fuck...?' He was confused._

_A baby. A little boy. A little boy who looked like the perfect mix of Huey and Jazmine._

_He had a large afro like his father and emerald green eyes like his mother. This was his child. Their, child._

"_Look what our 10-month-old son has been working on." Jazmine smiled before kneeling down next to her son. "Go to daddy." She simply told him._

_The baby looked at his mother, then father, then back to his mother who gave him an encouraging smile and nod._

_Huey watched intensely. He was still confused._

_That's when Huey saw his son stand, wobbling a little but stood firm. Then, he moves his right foot, then left, then right again. He was walking! By the look of Jazmine's face, this was his first steps._

"_Yes baby boy!" Jazmine clapped excitedly._

_Something took over Huey and he kneeled down too, in front of them. He held his arms in front of him._

"_Come on son." He found himself saying._

_The determined little boy did his best to stay on his feet. He wanted to get to his daddy! He stretched out his little, chubby arms and squealed in excitement. He dived into his father's hand who caught him before he could connect with the floor._

_Huey jumped up and threw his son lightly in the air._

"_That's my boy!" Huey cheered and began tickling him, listening closely to the giggle that rang sweetly through his ears._

"_Daddy!" He giggled._

"_He's a fast learner. Your mum said he's taking after you." Jazmine smiled as she kissed her child._

_Huey sighed, still not believing this. "If he does, terrible two is going to be no joke."_

_Jazmine laughed. "Yeah she told me that too, already got some tips don't worry."_

_Huey looked at the baby and Jazmine and snapped out of it. He slowly handed the baby back to Jazmine._

"_Daddy!" The boy cried but Huey stepped back._

_Jazmine's eyes showed concern. "Baby... Huey what's wrong? You look sick."_

_Huey shook his head. "This... isn't real..."_

_Jazmine laughed. "What do you mean this isn't real? How can you say that your fiancé and child is not real?"_

_Huey raised an eyebrow. "Fiancé?"_

"_Yes Huey! Fiancé! What's wrong with you?" She began to tear up._

"_We didn't, I, you." He took a deep breath. "You left Chicago."_

"_I never left. Are you feeling ok?" Jazmine lifted her hand towards his forehead which he swatted away. She was shocked. She placed their child on the floor before looking frustratingly at Huey. "You need to snap out of it Huey."_

_Huey grabbed onto his hair, nearly tearing it out. "That's what I'm trying to do Jazmine! This isn't real." He closed his eyes and could hear a distant ringing._

_He opened them again. Jazmine and the baby were gone. The room was empty._

'_Huh...?' He thought as he looked around. "Jazmine!" He called out._

"_She's dead."_

_Huey turned and his heart dropped as he looked down at the person._

"_Cairo..."_

_Cairo smiled, showing his bloody teeth. "Yes Huey... its me. The boy you killed." Huey could see the bullet wound in his chest, leaking with blood._

_Huey quickly shook his head. "It wasn't me."_

"_Just because you didn't pull the trigger, doesn't mean you're not as much responsible as the man that did." Cairo told him with a sinister smile on his face. "That's not the only person close to you that has been a victim to your morally wrong lifestyle."_

"_What?"_

"_Hello Huey."_

_Jazmine slowly stepped out from behind Cairo. His eyes couldn't believe what he was seeing. She was soaked in blood and her dress had multiple puncture holes._

"_You did this to me." She was furious with him._

"_What happened to you?" He was afraid of the answer._

"_Vladimir. He found me and killed me. Because of you, Huey Freeman." Jazmine pointed her bloody finger at him._

"_I'm sorry... both of you." Huey lowered his head._

"_Look at us." Cairo and Jazmine told him. His head was forced to look up._

"_You killed us Huey. We hate you. We will always hate you. You will never be happy. You will die alone. Everyone around you will die while you watch them suffer. They're suffering because of you Huey." The both said in sync, making Huey's heart break even more._

_He heard a ring again._

"_You hurt everyone you come in contact with. We hate you! You killed us! This is your fault!" They began to walk closer to him, screaming at him._

"_No... no..." Huey shook his head as he stepped back._

_Ring._

"_Where is that ringing coming from?!" He shouted in frustration._

"_Stop running from us Huey! Look at us! You killed us!" They bellowed in irritation._

_Huey balled his fist and glued his eyes shut. "This isn't real! Wake up Huey! Wake up!"_

* * *

"Shit!"

Huey sat up, covered in his sweat. He turned to see his phone flashing. It was his mother. He grabbed the phone and quickly answered.

"Hello." He breathed out, not bothered to wipe the sweat away from his forehead.

"Huey..." He heard her cry. Hearing his mother cry made him more alert. What had happened?

"Mom? What's wrong? Why are you cry?" He asked with worry swimming in his voice. He had to push his nightmare to the back of his mind to address later, as for now, he needs to find out why his mother was crying.

"It's your grandfather... he's in hospital." Huey jumped out the bed. The same sick feeling he felt in the dream was coming back. He felt like he had something to do with it. "Someone broke into his house and beat him up. He's in surgery. You need to come quick!"

"I'm on my way." Huey hung up and raced to the bathroom to have a quick wash.

Who broke into his house? Why did they beat him up? It was because of him wasn't it?

"Shit..." Huey mumbled as he jumped out the shower. It was. No one has ever broken into a Freeman's home. It wasn't just a robbery. He knew that. It was revenge.

Huey's nostrils flared as he threw on a random outfit. Someone was going to die today. And it wasn't a Freeman or a member of the Panthers. Someone was seriously going to be hurt.

He ran out his house and to his car, that's when he saw Riley, Demetrius and Dante all making their way out too.

"Mom?" Riley didn't have to say much because by the look of Huey's angry face, he knew they got the same phone call.

Huey nodded and they all went to Riley and Huey's car.

"Imma ride with you." Dante jumped in the passenger seat of Huey's car while Demetrius went over to Riley's.

Huey was speeding down the street while Dante was agitated in his seat.

"Mann what the fuck have we gotten into? This shit is spinning out of control. We need to get shit handled asap because we all know who did this." Dante told his older cousin and leader.

Huey nodded. "I know. We starting shit as soon as we leave the hospital."

"Good good... I'm gonna ask Anthony to have Coco for as long as this shit is happening. Maybe he will have to look after her full time as much as I hate to think like that. I mean he has a wife and Coco loves Tay and Tia. They have the perfect family. Fuck... I'm such a shit father, can't even protect my lil girl..." Dante rambled on.

Huey took quick glances to his cousin. This war was seriously fucking with everyone's mind. Shit, Huey still had the dream stuck in his head. This wasn't normal.

"I don't wanna hear that bs. You know you're the best father. Shit, if I ever get the chance to have kids, I would like to learn at least half the shit you had to learn. And don't forget you're raising a strong, black, girl who has a father who loves her and would do anything for her. Just make sure she knows it every chance she gets. She looks up to you, trust me." Huey told Dante sincerely.

Dante looked at his cousin shocked. He had never heard him talk like that before. It was strange but weirdly encouraging.

"Thanks man."

Huey nodded as the hospital came into view. "Any time. Plus, I know you're going to have your own family soon. You think I don't know about you and Faith." Huey parked the car and jumped out before Dante could recover from his shock.

"How did you know?!" Dante called out as he jogged towards the speed walking Huey.

Demetrius and Riley walked up behind them as they made their way to the front desk.

"Looking for Robert Freeman." Huey told the receptionist.

She looked up annoyed until her eyes landed on the four, fine, chocolate men standing in front of them.

"Any of you single?" She asked boldly.

The all looked at her annoyed.

"Bitch does it looks like we came to the hospital to look for hoes? Where the fuck is Robert Freeman?" Riley leaned over the desk. Demetrius had to pull him back from the desk.

"Damn, a girl can't ask question anymore. Shit." She typed a few things before sighing. "Second floor on the right."

They all raced to the elevator and got in, waiting impatiently for it to go up 2 levels. Once they got to their floor, they ran out and went to the right, where they were met with a waiting room.

"They're here!" Mackenzie announced as she stood up.

In the room were all of Robert's sons and their wives. They all looked angry, tired and upset.

"What happened?" Dante asked as he walked over to his parents.

Christain looked at them with anger flaring in his eyes. "You know how Miss Daisy and grandad both walk out to get the paper at the same time every day, without fail? Yeah so, he didn't do it this morning, so she was worried and went over to his house. She said the door was broken in so called us to check it. When we went in... we found him in the living room, duct tape around his hands, feet and mouth. The room was a mess but everything else was untouched. They beat the shit out of him. Man if I didn't know my dad, you would have thought he was as good as dead the way we found him but you know your grandad is a fighter. He's going get through this. He mumbled a name though... Natasha. Probably one of the fuckers that did this. You best find her and all of them." Christian explained emotionally.

Hearing the story made the room tense. The ripple effects of this war weren't good. And this was only the beginning.

Huey started pacing. "That's the same bitch Raven wanted to fuck up... Fuck! She messed up Raven and... the other girls. Once I know grandad alright, we rolling out."

Riley nodded. "That's what I'm saying. I hear they just got a spot down by Sonny's. Let's go light that bitch up."

Demetrius pulled out his phone. "I'm gonna hit up some niggas to find any other spots they can find. We lighting up everything today."

"Please be careful." Mackenzie begged them. "Huey you especially. You're still recovering."

"I'll be fine." Huey told his mother.

"Where is he?"

The family turned to see Anthony and Monique looking out of breath.

"He's still in surgery son." Mario pulled his son and daughter into a hug, holding them tight.

Anthony turned to Huey. "Huey what the fuck man? I thought you had this shit handled!"

Huey looked at his older cousin with squinted eyes. "I'm getting shit handled. Trust me."

"How am I meant to trust you when you got our grandad lying on a fucking hospital table?" Anthony asked. He was just as pissed off as everyone else and was taking it out on Huey. Huey knew it was his fault, he just didn't want someone screaming in his face about it.

"Come on boys, relax now." Dominic reached out for Huey but he shrugged him off.

"Nah fuck that! We all can't be like you Anthony, we don't get the luxury to fall in love and live happily ever after. You grew up in the same hood I did but I chose this life and I do anything to protect it and our family. Don't get onto me like this shit is easy because it's not. I already lost 1 person because of this shit and I refuse to lose another so if I gotta die in order to protect the rest of you once I kill every single Russian then I fucking will. When I say shit is going to be handle, I mean it."

By the end of Huey's speech, him and Anthony were toe to toe, looking each other dead in the eye, not breaking eye contact. It seemed as if recently, Huey was being more vocal of his emotions which was new to the family to see. It was better than him keeping it locked away like he used to, he changed a lot.

Before anyone could say anything else, a tired looking Jaliyah stepped out.

"How is he?" Christian was the first to ask. He took a quick glance to see his oldest sons chest moving up and down quickly. He looked very pissed off and he couldn't blame him. It was a shitty situation.

Jaliyah took a deep breath. She never thought there would be a day were she would have to operate on her grandfather. It was terrifying but she had a job to do, she had to save him.

"I managed to stop the internal bleeding... I'm not going to lie to you and say it wasn't a lot because it was. You got him here right on time..." She took another breath. Telling another family the results of surgery were much more simpler, even telling them their relative sadly passed on was easier than this. When it was your own, it was the hardest thing in the world. "His right knee was completely shattered so even with physiotherapy... grandad will have a walking stick for the rest of his life." She lowered her gaze and began to shake her head and cry. "I'm sorry. I couldn't do more, I-"

"Baby." Jaliyah's mother and Dominic's wife, Trinity, held onto her daughters cheeks and lifted her head. "Don't you dare doubt your abilities. You did the best that was possible. You saved your grandfather! I couldn't be more proud of you."

Naomi, Mario's wife pulled Jaliyah into a hug. "We're all so proud of you."

"When can we see him?" Mario asked.

"You can see him now but he will be a bit drowsy from the medication." The surgeon of the family told them.

"Ok. You boys go see him first, we know you have to find out what happened." Christian gave them a knowing look.

They all nodded and walked towards the room their cousin told them. The whole time, they could feel how tense it was between the two oldest. They were avoiding eye contact the whole time and stood the furthest away.

They walked inside the room and felt sick. Robert Freeman was hooked up to all different machines. Despite his old age, he has never looked this sickly. It shocked them all. They were able to hold in most of their emotions but knew their parents will struggle to so the same.

"Hey grandad. How you feeling?" Anthony was the first to ask.

His eyes were closed but they knew he was awake. When they first came in, he opened his eyes but closed it once he saw who was now in the room to see him.

"Well... I'm not... dead."

They all couldn't help but to smirk and laugh. That was the best answer he could have given them.

"Do you know who did this to you?" Huey questioned. He needed to know.

Anthony shot him a sharp look. "Huey. He just got out of surgery, have some fucking respect-"

"Stop." They all looked at their grandfather who had opened up his eyes. The room stood still for a few seconds, the only sound was from the beeping of machines he was hooked up to. They looked into the maroon eyes they had inherited that had now lost its light. "Toni... don't be so harsh... on Huey. He's only... doing... what he does best. You're like me... he's like Ryan..."

Ryan Freeman. Robert and Cookie Freeman's older brother. He was the gang leader before Christian took over and had no children of his own. Robert was always seen as the wuss out of the lot. He was scared of everything which is why it was strange to see all his kids join the 'family business'. He died a couple of years ago from heart complications, he had enough time to see his nephews grow into the strong men they are and then beginning of their children's growth. It was sad when he died but he always said it was better than dying in the street with no loved ones around him.

"That doesn't mean he can mess up all our liv-"

"Stop it. It's not his fault... we all slip up... sometimes. You have to give him... room to figure... it out. It's not easy... I watched Ryan struggle first time." Robert tried to explain to them.

Anthony and Huey looked at each. They knew the anger towards each other wouldn't last long, it wasn't how they were raised. They were taught that family comes first so, they would have to figure out their differences.

"I'll try, for you grandad." Anthony held his hand.

Robert slowly shook his head. "Don't... do for me."

Anthony nodded and turned to Huey. "Ask what you gotta ask, cuz." He said aggressively.

Huey took a deep breath before walking up to his grandfather. "Grandad... do you remember who attacked you, besides from the female?"

Robert turned his eyes away from the people in the room and stared up at the plain white ceiling. "One had one eye and blonde hair. The other was bald with a spider tattoo on his head." He recounted painful.

Huey nodded. "Thank you. Trust me, they will pay for what they did to you."

"Don't stress yourself out. All of you." Robert advised them.

"We'll see you soon grandad. Stay strong." Demetrius told him.

"Nigga, I've been strong... acting like... this shit new to... a pimp... like me." Robert said as he slowly closed his eyes.

His grandsons smirked. This is the future of them.

They all walked out the room and stopped to look at each other.

"Toni... I need a huge favour. Can you look after Coco for me? I know she loves stay at yours so she should be good. Mom and dad won't be able to handle her for that long and her and Tay are close. I'll send you money and-"

"Bro relax." Anthony put his hand on Dante's shoulder reassuringly. "You're family. You don't need to explain anything."

Dante's pulled him into a quick hug. "Thanks man."

"Any time." Anthony turned to Huey and they faced off again.

"You niggas are getting on my nerves with that gay shit. Say it with your chest and move on, fuck." Riley shook his head before walking back to the waiting room with the twins following behind him.

"If you're just going to cuss me then hurry up and do it. I got shit to do, cuz." Huey stroked over his neatly trimmed beard.

Anthony smirked. "I said what I said already and I mean it Huey. You got a whole lotta shit to clean up. I say this as the oldest, I'm not ready to bury no one with Freeman as their last name, that's why I'm so hard on you. How many times you think we're to get luck? Just think about it and end what you need to end."

"I hear you. Trust me, no one is dying on my watch."

"So we good?"

Huey smirked and held out his hand, which Anthony accepted. "We good."

They walked back to the waiting room to where their family is waiting for them.

"You two put your differences aside?" Mario asked.

Huey and Anthony looked at each other and shrugged. "I guess you can say that. As much as I hate to say it but I got to get back to work and get things sorted for Coco."

"Yeah and we got somewhere, well you already know." Huey didn't even need to tell them what he was going to do. Plus, some would rather not know.

"Be careful. I hate hospitals." Mackenzie kissed her sons.

"You know we always are." Riley grinned cheekily.

Mackenzie rolled her eyes while Christian laughed. "We'll keep you updated. Go do what you gotta do."

With that, the sons of the family left with Anthony going one way and the rest going another.

Huey called Raven while driving to get armour.

"_Hello?"_

"You good?" Huey asked her.

"_Yeah, what's up?"_

Huey sighed and looked over at Dante who shrugged. "Some people beat up grandad last night. He just had surgery and he's good but will have a walking stick from now on." Huey quickly filled her in.

"_What?! Who the fuck jumped grandad?! Huey!"_ Raven stopped to catch her breath, she forgot her ribs were not healed.

"Your best friend, Natasha."

"_Oh heeeelllllll nah! Fuck it! I'm killing a bitch today! Where the fuck my glock?!"_

They heard shuffling in the background.

"Raven? Raven relax! We'll handle it. Just tell us what she looks like." Dante jumped in. They both shock their head, she was something else.

"_She looks like that hoe from Avengers... Scarlett Johansson! Yeah, but with short, ugly, brown hair. I didn't see anything else that can help you."_

Huey nodded. "That's good enough. I'll update you."

"_You best. Later guys."_

She hung up as they arrived to the warehouse.

"Let's go kill some people." Dante sighed as they walked inside.

As they walked inside, people were busy doing work. Just like before, Huey liked to see this, they were getting their money up.

"Hey Ghost." A woman around the same age as him walked up to him. "I did some snooping and found two other stash houses not far from the location you're going to."

Huey thought about the information given to him. At first, he was just going to have him and his boys roll up to the place he knew for certain the ones who beat up his grandad was but decided it was best to hit the white man where it hurt them most. Their pockets.

Huey walked to the centre of the room.

"Listen up!" Everyone paused where they were standing and turned to listen to their leader. "These motherfuckers are pushing us too hard so we going to show them that they can't push us around. We're doing three hits now. We light up three different locations at the same time. Any able body person needs to roll out right fucking now. Me, Tri and Reezy will lead the group. Once you suit up, I got more info for you. Let's go."

Ghost walked away without saying anything else and everyone followed him.

"Ay man, I heard what happened, you good?" MC had found Ghost getting his weapons and joined him.

"Yeah I'm good." Huey said emotionless.

"How grandad?"

"He'll get through it. He's too stubborn to be injured for long."

Caesar smirked. "You got that right."

"Where's HO?" Huey asked.

"He already got his shit on. He by the vans." MC informed him.

"Good." He walked back to the main room where everyone was waiting for the next information. They had already split themselves into three groups. This is why he liked the gang. They had common sense. He didn't even need to tell them who should go with who, makes his job 10 times easier.

"Some of you may know, three of them motherfuckers beat up my grandad last night... nearly killed him but they didn't." He heard the gasps around the room. That was a huge disrespect. You never involve the innocents in a war. "They crossed a line and they need to pay. While you're raiding these places, not only collect the drugs and money but look out for a female that looks like Scarlett Johannsson with short brown hair, if you don't know who she is, google it. Then two males: one with one eye and blonde hair. The other was bald with a spider tattoo on his head. Once you locate them, capture them and bring them here, to me. I will sort them out. Anyone else... kill them." Ghost told them all. He saw all his people nod in understanding. "Roll out!"

They all ran out to each different van, jumped in and drove off as if they were in a high-speed chance.

"I take it grandad is cool." HO said as he drove them to the original location they had. It was harder to drive since it wasn't night time like they would usually be driving around to complete their 'missions'. This was a matter that wasn't going to wait to be sorted when the sun set, this had to be addressed now.

Huey nodded. "Going to have a walking stick."

"Damn... that's fucked."

"Which is the very reason we have to end this soon. We can't have anyone else getting hurt."

"I hear that..." Hiro contemplated if he should ask Huey this next question.

Huey saw his friends conflicted face and sighed silently. "What's on your mind?"

Hiro scratched the back of his neck. "Um, this sounds stupid but, have you been getting dreams about, you know, Jazmine? I got one of Ming last night and I don't think I can get over her any time soon, shit pulled at a boy's heart strings and shit. I felt as if she was actually here with me you know. I don't know if I should find someone else to get my mind off her, I don't know, its fucked."

"At least yours was a dream... mine was a fucking nightmare." Huey looked out the window at first but gave a quick look at Hiro who was encouraging him to talk. Why he opened his mouth again, he didn't know. "It started off as a dream... I was in a house and saw Jazmine... and a baby, a little boy. Jazmine said he was 10 months and our son, we were also engaged. It all seemed fun when the baby started walking towards me, calling me dad and all that shit but then I remembered it wasn't real. She got angry, I closed my eyes and when I opened it... she was gone. That's when I heard... Cairo." Huey saw the shocked look on Hiro's face but he didn't say anything. "He was there, with blood dripping from his bullet wound, the one that killed him and said that people around me die. That's when... Jazmine came out. Her dress was covered in blood, I couldn't believe it. They both started shouting at me, blaming me for their deaths, saying I would never be happy, that everyone around me dies. I couldn't take it and forced myself awake. I haven't had a nightmare about Cairo in over 10 years and now he comes back with Jazmine. Shit fucked a nigga up, I can't even lie about that shit."

Hiro looked at his friend and boss. It was different to see him spill out so much emotion. He would never do this if you asked him about a nightmare months ago. He wouldn't even let you know if he had a dream let alone a nightmare! This was all new so Hiro took time to soak in the information that was laid out in front of him.

"You love her."

"Huh?" Huey turned to face Hiro so face, he nearly got whiplash.

Hiro shrugged. "It's simple, you. Love. Jazmine."

Huey shook his head. "That's impossible, we barely knew each other."

Hiro chuckled. "I hate to sound like one of them people but I have to be. Love doesn't have a time for when it comes, it just comes and you my friend, love someone you meet for a couple of weeks and her being away has made it even stronger. You miss her but your guilty of the pain you put her through which is driving you mad, probably why Cairo popped up. You feel guilty for them both."

Huey listened to what Hiro had to say. Did he love Jazmine? He knew he felt guilt for Jazmine's kidnapping and Cairo's death but did he love her?

Every time he heard her name, his heart tightened, in a good and bad way. He shouldn't feel this way, he never has and he didn't want to. Maybe he did love her... it was too late anyway. He screwed up and she was far away from him which is good for her. But was it good for him?

"It doesn't matter anyway. She's gone." Was the best response he could give.

"Huey..."

"We're here." Ghost interrupted the driver.

HO looked over and saw Ghost already jumping out the van with his weapon ready and mask on. He sighed and did the same. His boss was suffering.

Ghost walked to the back and opened up the van.

His people all came pilling out, ready for action.

"Remember the three people we are looking out for. If you find them, knock them out and bring them here. Do NOT kill them. Kill everyone else." Ghost told them. They all nodded. "Move out."

Ghost took the lead while HO covered the back. Ghost lived up to his name and moved like one, silently. Everyone else were a bit louder but not enough to draw attention.

They got to the door and Ghost held up his closed fist, making everyone stop. He put his head to the door and could hear the faint sound of laughter.

He turned and pointed to the door. They all understood. Standing, Ghost lifted his foot and sent a powerful kick to the door, knocking it off the hinges.

That's when the panic came.

The Panthers all raced inside, guns aimed. Bullets flew towards them and they all ducked and took cover.

"You know what to do!" Ghost shouted.

His people nodded before moving in different directions.

HO took a peak around the corner and saw someone hiding in their own corner. As he went to shot them, someone popped up in front of him, knocked his gun out his hand and punched him in the face.

"Shit!" He screamed as pain flooded his nose.

"Come on Jackie Chan! Let's see what you got." The man taunted as he squared up.

HO looked at him in disbelief.

"Really. We're doing this?"

The man shrugged.

HO sighed. "Fine."

He didn't even get time to get in his own stance as he was kicked in the side.

"Mother!"

Before the man could kick HO again, his leg was grabbed and pushed sideways, making him lose balance. That's when HO jumped up and sent two kicks into his back, making him drop.

"Is that all you got?" The man mocked.

He stood back up and threw punches towards HO who managed to expertly block each one. The man was frustrated so threw some more but all hits were blocked. It didn't take long before the punches became sloppy and slow. Seeing the opening, HO geared up one good punch and sent it right to his temple. He crumpled to the ground as if he was a piece of paper.

"And I'm Japanese. Bastard." HO said the last word in his mother tongue to emphases where he was from. All Asian's are not from China!

Ghost had made his way further into the house when he heard something drop. He turned to see a door open and someone with blonde hair rush out and turn to look at him. That's when Ghost saw it. One eye.

His eyes turned into slits and his vision was on this one person.

The man tried to run but Ghost was quicker. He ran up behind him and pulled him back using his jumper, making the man drop flat on his back. Not in the mood to give the man a fighting chance, Ghost punched the blonde in the face a couple of times before flipping him on his stomach. Once he was on his stomach, Ghost quickly wrapped his arm around his neck and applied pressure.

"Huh! Huk!" The man struggles for air.

"Don't. Fight. It." Ghost said through gritted teeth. He could feel his heart rate slow and stopped apply pressure. The man was unconscious, not dead.

Ghost stood up, grabbed one of the guys legs and began to drag him towards the exit.

HO ran around the corner, gun in hand.

"Damn. Which one that?" HO questioned.

"One eye." Ghost answered.

"And you didn't have to break a sweat."

HO grabbed another leg and helped Ghost drag him outside. Ghost looked around and saw only a few bodies his people managed to take care of. Weather they were dead or not didn't matter.

They were all going to die.

Ghost pulled out a grenade.

"Oh shhiittt." HO saw it and instantly knew what was going to happen. "Max! Help me with this!" He called out for another person to help drag the body to the van, leaving Huey in front of the house.

Ghost held the grenade in his hand. Fire did sell good shit.

Before he took the pin out, he paused when he heard a noise.

He ran back inside the house.

"Ghost!" HO called out. "Fuck man." He sighed. Why did he run back inside?

Ghost ran back inside, still aware he was on enemy ground and followed the noise which lead him to the same room the blonde had come out.

He walked in and was shocked at what he saw, his ears matched what he thought he heard.

A cry.

From a baby.

There lying on the bed was a baby who didn't look over 3 months old. He couldn't believe it. He nearly killed an innocent child. He felt sick.

He walked closer to the red face baby and froze. He couldn't leave the baby here. He was going to burn down the building, the baby couldn't stay here.

"Fuck." Ghost said out loud.

He picked up the baby who was wrapped up in a blue blanket, making him think it was a baby boy and gentle bounced him like how Anthony and Dante would do. Almost instantly, the baby stopped crying.

Ghost was about to walk out when the baby's eyes opened. It was green. Emerald green. Like Jazmine's.

'Get out of there Ghost!' He shouted to himself.

Snapping out of the day dream, he picked up the only baby bag in the room, flung it around his shoulder and ran out.

He turned, took out the grenade again, used his teeth to pull off the pin and threw it. Despite his hands being full, he still had perfect aim and managed to smash the window.

Then Ghost ran. He ran as quickly as he could and held the baby close to his chest to block out as much noise from the explosi-

"AHHHHH!" The baby screamed as the house went up in flames, glass and brick flying everywhere.

After what felt like forever, Ghost saw the van and jumped in making HO speed away instantly.

"Did you- how- a fucking baby?!" HO couldn't believe what he was hearing and seeing. Ghost went in empty handed now had a whole baby in his arms.

"I heard him crying." Ghost breathed out.

"Him?"

Ghost shrugged. "Blue blanket. Need you to drive fast. I wanna drop him to my parents at the hospital before we go back to the warehouse."

HO looked at him strange but didn't say anything and did what he was told.

* * *

At the same time all this happen, Reezy and MC had just entered the building they were assigned to.

"Surprise motherfuckers!" Reezy shouted his favourite line for whenever they raided a house.

Shots were fired and everyone was ducking and diving.

MC jumped into action and started shooting up the place. He heard someone coming up behind him and turned, sending a punch straight at them. He looked at the person who was trying to recover from the punch and threw his arms up in disappointment.

"Maaaannnn not a brother!"

An older black man looked pissed at MC.

MC shook his head. "A motherfucking uncle Tom. Such a sad sight to see."

The man punched the Panther member in the lip. "You talk too much nigga."

"Oh... I have to kick your ass now." MC squared up. The man threw a punch which he dodged and sent an uppercut straight to his chin. This made the man stumbled backwards so MC pulled out his gun and let the bullet fly straight through his skull. "This could have ended differently brother." MC sighed before going to see who else needed to be killed.

Reezy was having his usual shoot out fun until he felt someone jump on his back, trying to strangle him.

"Ak! What the fuc-!" Reezy ran backwards so the person hit their back against the wall. Once he felt them loosen their grip, he bent over (pause) and threw them over his head. The person crashed to the floor and he ripped the mask off their face. "Ay! Scarlet Johansson looking bitch!" He shouted in realisation.

She looked at him confused before kicking him in the family jewels.

"Bitch..." He coughed out as he held onto them for dear life. Those were his babies. He dropped to his knees in pain and she took the opportunity to try and kick him in the face but he was quick to caught it.

He pulled her leg towards him, making her hop closer before punching her in the face.

"Ow!" She held onto her nose in pain as she landed on the floor.

"My mama told me not to hit girls but fuck that!" Reezy stood up and got ready to fight.

Instead of fighting back, she turned and tried to run.

"Nah fuck that!" Reezy swung his leg which connected with hers, making her fall to the ground. Unfortunately for her, a table was in the way on her way down and her forehead connected with it, knocking her out.

Reezy looked at her still body shocked. There was a single line of blood slowly moving down her forehead.

"Ay Reezy did you find- nigga did you kill her?!" MC ran up to his friend who was staring at the body.

"Ionknow. If she is, Ghost gonna kill me."

MC went over and felt for a pulse. He let out a breath. "She's alive!"

Reezy sighed with relief. "Good. Let's blow this bitch up and bounce." He threw the woman over his shoulder and carried her to the van. "Make sure you zip tie this hoe up good. She will kick you in the dick." He told them all as he threw her in the back.

The building exploded and they all jumped in the van and drove back to the warehouse. At least they got one.

* * *

Tri and Dee had entered the building of their own location. The twins moved in sync with one another.

It was all going well until they saw the person they were looking for. The bald head with a spider tattoo. Grandad missed out the part when he was built like the rock... but times 10.

"For fuck sakes..." Tri sighed in annoyance.

"Why we get left with the big crazy one." Dee stomped his foot. Something his daughter would do.

"Stop being pussies and fight!" The man's deep voice vibrated the whole room.

"Just remember what he did to grandad." Tri reminded his twin. They nodded and charged towards the man, to then get clothed lined.

"Damn that shit hurt." Dee moaned on the floor.

"Haha. This is as easy as your grandfather." The man laughed.

This pissed them off. They jumped up again and started to attack the man from different angles. Not many made contact but they were not going to give up.

Tri dodged a punch but the same hand opened up and grabbed Dee by the neck. He began to squeeze.

"Fu-ck!" Dee chocked out. He had never been chocked like this before.

Tri panicked and looked around the room. He saw a chair, picked it up and smashed it against his head. The man froze, dropped and slowly turned around. Tri was pretty sure he heard growling.

"Ohhhhh shhhiiiiitttt." Tri had to keep dodging all the punches. He was large so didn't have much speed to him, he had to use that to his advantage.

Dee managed to catch most his breath and saw his brother running around, trying not to get caught by the large man. That's when he thought of the idea. He caught his twin's eyes and held up the number two. Tri knew what it meant and smirked.

The man swung at Tri again who ducked and rolled over to where his brother was standing. They barely gave the man a second to turn before delivery a sharp punch to each side of his head.

"Double trouble motherfucker!" They both shouted. They turned and gave a donkey kick right to the chest, causing the man to crash to the floor, out cold.

Tri and Dee hunched over to catch their breath.

"A nigga needs to get back to working out because what the fuck was that shit. I'm tired as fuck." Dee whipped the sweat off his forehead.

"I hear that." Tri leaned back. "Ay! Come help drag this nigga out!"

In came two other members who grabbed the man's legs while the twins grabbed the arms. They dragged him outside, sent the grenade inside and ran to the van, ready to get the fuck out of there and back to the warehouse.

* * *

Outside the hospital

"We got here just in time." Ghost said as he saw his parents, aunties and uncles coming outside. "Pull up here, I'm jumping out." He told the driver who did what he was asked.

Christian looked ahead and noticed the black van in front of them. People were looking at it cautiously, scared at what business a van had at the hospital.

"Huey?" He said out loud. Mackenzie turned to her husband confused, so she followed his eyes.

She saw her son holding... a baby?!

Huey jogged towards his family who were all surprised.

"Baby... why do you have a baby?" Mackenzie smiled nervously at him.

He quickly but safely handed the baby over to her.

"I found him, I'm guessing, at one of the stash houses. Couldn't leave them. I gotta go, bye." With that, Huey ran back to the van and raced off.

"Huey! I'm too old for this!" She shouted after him but they were already gone. There was no point in trying.

Naomi and Trinity looked at the baby. "Girrrllll he gave you a little white baby."

Trinity shrugged. "Could be mixed. Look at the hair."

Mario shook his head. "This shit is something else.

"Tell me about it." Dominic added.

"So. Who wants a baby?" Christian asked the other two couples.

"Nope."

"Bye."

"Hello. Hey baby, no I'm not busy."

"Jesus is that you calling?"

Christian and Mackenzie looked at the four other adults walking away.

"You hoes so immature!" She shouted after them, but they continued to act deaf. She sighed and looked at the still sleeping baby. "I guess we have to do some baby shopping. We don't know how long we're going to have him. He looks like a him, right?" She asked him.

"Yeah but you can check when you change his diaper. You know, to be sure." They began to walk towards the car. "We don't even have a car seat..."

"What the fuck is you son up to? Shit, getting a bitch stressed out about children when mine are already grown. I don't want to go back, been there done that. Stupid child of mine." Mackenzie cussed as she got in the car. She was just going to have to hold the baby for now.

Whose baby is this?

* * *

Ghost reached back to the warehouse at last.

"What took your ass so long?" He saw Midnight come up to him. She walked slowly, trying not to strain her body.

"What's your ass doing here?" Huey threw back at her. He went to the back and had HO help him drag the body to the very special room for people like them.

"You know I wanted to see if you caught that bitch. I was not going to sit at home while she's here."

"You can't do nothing."

Midnight paused and looked at him crazy before walking back up next to him dragging the body to the room. "We have known each other for hmm nearly 26 years nigga- woah your birthday coming up- and you still think I'm going to let a little injury stopping me from what I wanna do. Huh you crazy."

Ghost walked in first and saw two people already tied to the chairs with black bags over their head. There was one chair left, waiting for the one-eyed man to take place.

"About time. Why it take you so long?" Reezy complained.

"I'll explain everything later." He looked around the room and saw everyone looked a little roughed up. "Do I even want to know what happened to you lot?"

"No." They all answered.

"Ok then." Ghost and HO tied the man to the chair, put a bag over his head and stepped back.

"Midnight what you doing here?" Dee asked her.

She rolled her eyes. "I'm here to kill a bitch duh."

"I'll like to see you try." They all turned to look at the only female tied to the chair.

Raven smirked as she walked over to stand in front of her. "Aww look who woke up-" She ripped off the bag and her face dropped. "Who the fuck is this?"

They all looked at her confused.

"This not the Natasha bitch you were on about?" MC asked.

The woman smirked. "Ha! You were looking for my twin sister Natasha. I'm Natalia."

"Shit... same thing. You can fuck her up too." Reezy shrugged.

Midnight was fuming. "This is not the bitch I wanted! I wanted Natasha not Natalia! And it's the wrong one that jumped granddad so it's not just me that should be pissed!"

"Will you please be quiet, I'm trying to sleep here." The large man the twins brought in was awake. They pulled off his bag. He looked Raven up and down. "Hm. Pretty girl."

She rolled her eyes in disgust. "You wish." He shrugged.

"You going to wake up your little friend over there?" Tri crossed his arms. The man looked straight ahead.

"Fine. I'll wake him up." Ghost walked over to the blonde and removed the last bag. He took out his knife and placed it on his eyebrow, on top of his missing eye. He then slowly dragged it down his face, making the man jump awake.

"Ah! Motherfucker!" He screamed. He tried to fight against the restraints but it didn't work. He could feel the blood dripping down his face.

"Now!" Ghost voice boomed around the room, grabbing everyone's attention. "You all best start talking before I start cutting off pieces of your body."

Nothing.

Ghost paused. "You think I'm playing?"

HO smirked at them. "I suggest you say something before you lose something."

Silence.

"Nothing?"

…

"Ok."

Ghost walked over to the biggest person and smirked as he took out his knife.

"Fuuuuucccccccckk!" The large man screamed.

Ghost dropped the item on the floor. It was the man's ear.

He began to curse in Russian but Ghost blocked it out.

"Names! Dates! Locations! Something motherfuckers! I got all day for this shit. I'm not like your shitty ass leader that likes to talk. Tell me something. I know they're itchy to hurt you bitches." Ghost looked over to the six other people in the room and saw on all their faces that they were thirsty for blood. Even though the girl didn't do anything directly, she was still responsible. She had to pay for her twin's sins. Ghost took a deep breath. "Fine. Midnight."

He turned to walk away as Midnight stepped up. She already had her weapon of choice in her hand. It was a crowbar. She swung, making a connection with Natalia's face.

"Ahhh!" She cried out as she felt her lip bust open.

Midnight swung again, causing her nose to bleed.

"I think my nose is broken..." She moaned out in pain.

"Tell us what we wanna know and I might save you a broken cheek bone." Midnight threatened her but she got no answer. "I guess I gotta swing harder-"

"Wait!" Natalia lowered her face in fear.

"Start talking." Ghost demanded. Midnight drop the crowbar and stepped back, happy that she was talking. Her ribs were starting to hurt her. She only did it because the men refuse to put their hands on women (besides from self-defence like Reezy earlier). Midnight knew Natalia was the weakest link, she needed to break. And she did just that.

Natalia took a deep breath. "Vladimir is selling the coke for low price. That way people will get hooked and demand more product. He gets more money and gets what you got."

"You bitch!" The man with the spider tattoo tried to grab her. "You're weak! Pathetic! We should have left you to die all them months ago! Ungrateful bitch! Just wait until Vlad- ahk ahk" He began to choke on his own blood.

Ghost drove his dagger through his throat. There was something about driving the blade into his skin and hearing the gurgle of blood that was satisfying his ears right now. He might have become crazy.

Once Ghost removed the blade, the mans head dropped and blood leaked all over his lap. Some even landed on Ghost's legs but he didn't care.

He stood so that the remaining two could see his tall statue and the blade that was dripping with blood.

"What. Else?"

Again, nothing.

Ghost sighed and rubbed his forehead, being mindful of the blood that was on his hand.

"Do I have to get some to-"

"Did you kill him?" The blonde man spoke up for the first time in a while.

Everyone looked at him. "Who?"

"The baby. Did you kill him?"

Everyone besides HO was confused. "What baby?" MC asked.

Ghost ignored them. "No. Unlike your boss, I don't hurt the innocent."

He nodded. "He's not mine. You don't need to worry about the parents, they're dead."

Midnight looked at Ghost. "What baby Ghost?" She repeated the same question MC had.

"I told you I will tell you later." He looked at them all seriously. He turned back to the two in the chair. "Do you have anything else to tell me?"

They shook their head.

"Ok." Ghost stepped in front of the blonde and pulled out his gun. "He'll be fine." Ghost blocked out the woman's crying and sobbing and aimed the gun at the man's head. The one eye he had left looked Ghost dead in his maroon eyes. He suddenly smirked.

"I hope your grandfather choked on his own bloo-" He was cut off once the bullet entered his good eye and through his brain.

"Shhiitt Ghost! You killed her too." HO said shocked as he looked at her head that was hanging low.

Ghost was shocked too and walked to the middle of the two.

The bullet had exited the blondes head and entered the back of hers.

"Shit. I was going to let Midnight do it."

"Too late nigga." She slowly shook her head.

Ghost sighed. "Oh well. Let's go to my office." They all walked out casually, leaving behind three, fresh, dead bodies behind. The regularly people will clean it up.

They walked into Ghost office and all relaxed a bit. It was an active few hours from the moment they woke up.

"So, you going to tell us what baby cyclops was talking about?" Raven gestured behind her.

"Imagine we're ready to leave and I see this guy run back in and comes out with a baby. Then he made me drive to the hospital to give to Chris and Kenzie before we dipped straight after. I know his mum is fuming." Hiro smirked.

"What are you going to do with the baby Huey?" Dante questioned his cousin.

Huey sighed. "I don't know. All I knew was that he could stay there."

"You going to look after him?" Demetrius asked.

Huey looked at his cousin as if he was stupid. "Do you really think I have time to look after a baby right now?"

"Yeah that was a stupid question to ask." He mumbled in embarrassment.

"Well we can't throw him in the foster system! You know how shit that is." Raven pointed out.

"What do you suggest we do?" Huey asked her.

She took a deep breath. "Can't your parents look after him?"

"As much as they enjoy babies, they like to give them back. They're not going to want to keep a baby."

They all sat there silently, wondering what to do next. This was a child they were talking about. They were innocent in all of this and deserved a good life.

Raven was in deeper thought. She had a friend that was in the foster system and she heard many horror stories as well as the good. Unfortunately for the girl, there was more bad memories than good. She was got adopted at 16 so she finally got the home she wished for.

'No... you can't do it.' Raven thought to herself.

Huey saw the look on Raven's face and knew her long enough to see she was arguing with herself in her head.

"Raven. Speak what's on your mind."

She looked at all the men in the room. She really needed to find some female friends. "I was thinking... what if I take him?"

They all looked at her shocked.

"As in, adopt?" Caesar pushed.

She shrugged. "Yeah... I think so."

"Dead ass?" Dante added.

"Dead ass." She said more confidently.

Riley burst out in laughter, making her eyebrows screw together. "Hoe whatchu know about babies?"

"Shut up. You're saying it like people can't learn. And I'll have you know that I am amazing with babies."

"Huh. Ok nigga, whatever you say."

"Are you sure?" Huey asked her. She turned and looked him in the eyes. They had a silent conversation where they both came to an understanding.

Before they could continue, there was knock at the door.

"Come in!" Huey called out.

In walked his parents with the wide awake and active baby in her arms.

"What are you doing here?" Huey asked them.

Raven and Riley got out their seats to allow the elders to take a seat.

"You really think you could throw a child in my arms and I wasn't going to come find you before you could find me. Huh. You're crazy." Mackenzie looked her son up and down.

"So, where's his parents?" Christian inquired.

"Dead." Huey told them.

"Did you?"

"No."

"Ok."

They all just looked at each other for a few seconds.

"Hmm hmm." The baby began to suck on his fist.

"What's going to happen to little man?" Christian smiled at the baby. Huey watched the way his parents interacted with the baby and wondered if this was how they acted with him and Riley.

He mentally rolled his eyes. 'Of course they did.'

"Well we were just discussing that... and Raven was thinking about taking him."

Mackenzie swung around to look at the girl she knew since birth. "You? You want the baby?"

Raven shrugged. "I can try. If it is too much for me, I will make sure he gets the perfect home."

"That's very honourable of you." Mackenzie stood and walked over to Raven. "Raven meet baby, baby meet Raven." Carefully, she passed the baby over to the younger woman. "He's not even two months yet. We found his birth certificate in the bag with just his date of birth. Nothing else. It wasn't filled out yet."

Raven looked at the baby in her arms. He was adorable! His green eyes were wide with curiosity, wondering who was this woman holding him. He was small but that wasn't going to be for long, she was going to fatten him up a bit. "Hey baby. I'm going to look after you now. Is that ok?" She talked to the baby who just continued to look her deep into her eyes. He was grabbing at her heart.

"You know we can't just keep calling the baby, baby. He needs a name." Caesar told them.

Everyone started thinking of names but Raven already had one in her mind. She thought of the tattoo of a name that she will never forget.

"Cairo. His name will be Cairo." She announced. She began to tear up as the baby began to coo at the name. "Looks like he likes his names. Isn't that right Cairo?"

Mackenzie put her hands to her mouth as she wrapped her arms around Raven. "Perfect name for a perfect baby." Mackenzie turned to Huey who was silent for a very long time. "Don't you think son?"

Huey snapped out of his day dream. Hearing Raven say Cairo's name was weird. She never liked to talk about him as much as Huey did. They both had a mutual understanding that it was a painful time for them both.

"Yeah... it's a nice name." He took a quick glance at his tattoo that was creeping out from under his sleeve. That's when last night's nightmare flashed in his head and he quickly whipped his head upwards so he wasn't looking at the name anymore. "I'll give you some money to get things you're going to need."

"Thank you Hu. I'm going to find Faith to check him over, just in case." Raven nodded as she walked out with the baby in her hand. He already had her full attention.

Hearing the female doctors name made Dante perk up. "I'll come with you!"

Demetrius shook his head at his brother. "I'll make sure he stays on a leash."

"We'll get to work." Caesar and Hiro said their goodbyes before leaving the family of four in the room.

"Been a crazy 24 hours huh?" Christian smirked.

Huey sighed. "That's not even the half of it."

"This whole day is just one big mess! At this point, a nigga needs a draank." Riley exaggerated.

"If you're that tired, I think you need to go back to training." Christian told his youngest child.

"Ion need it."

"Yeah you do. Everyone is going to be training whenever they can. The Russian's are serious business but it is nothing we can't handle. Training will just make it all run more smoother." Huey told his brother who rolled his eyes.

Mackenzie smiled softly before it dropped as quick as it came up. "I hate to break it to you baby but... they're already breaking out. The drug is out. The streets are going to be a lot more dangerous so just be careful please. I love you boys. I don't want to see you hurt."

"Mama you know we straight. Ain't nobody going to touch Young Reezy. I'm too fly for that shit."

She shook her head. "It's you I'm most worried about as well."

Riley looked offended but said nothing.

"How's granddad?" Huey asked.

"He's doing alright. He's just been sleeping off the surgery but Jaliyah is keeping us updated as much as she can. Going to visit him again soon." Christian told his sons. Him and his wife stood so Huey did too. "We'll see you when we see you."

"Be careful." Their mother reminded them.

They said their goodbyes and left the two brothers alone.

"Maannn shit about to get crazy. And a nigga 'bout to be 24 next week." Riley flopped back into the chair he gave up for his mother.

"Yeah, I'm going to be 26 soon. We going to be spending our birthdays in shoot outs." Huey leaned back in his chair.

"Ay. I don't mind, as long as a nigga doesn't get shot, I'm good."

Huey rolled his eyes. "Whatever Riley."

"Shiitt if only niggas weren't trying to blow a motherfuckers brains out, I would have thrown a lit party. Might just popped up to The Blue Moon just for a little sum sum... even though it won't be the same." Riley mumbled the last bit, hoping Huey wouldn't hear but he hears everything.

Huey looked at his brother who was looking everywhere but at him. He does that when he does something he shouldn't be doing. "Have you started your insta stalking on Royalty already?" Huey thought to ask.

Riley looked at him shocked. 'How this nigga know?'

"No." Was what Riley choose to say.

"Riley..."

"Ok! Ok! Shit!" Riley pulled out his phone and went on Instagram to Royalty's page which came up quicker than it should have. "She posted a picture of her in front of a mall. Do you want to know where?"

Huey didn't want to know where Jazmine was. That was the reason why he never checked the necklace. "No-"

"Woodcrest! They went back home." Riley didn't even care about Huey's own sanity and blurted out the answer.

'They did go back to where it all started. Thought as much. Must have been hard for them... fuck.' Huey thought.

"She probably hooking up with an old boyfriend or some shit." Riley stood up and began to pace up and down. "I don't give a fuck. She can do what she wants. She's a grown ass woman. We ain't together. At least I know where they are, I need to tell Caesar or his bitch ass won't stop crying over Cindy. Damn. I need some pussy right now... you think the girls at the club will be up for it?"

Huey looked at his brother confused. "What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"What?" Riley stopped and looked at his brother.

"I told your ass to leave them girls alone, what don't you understand about that. Go do some fucking work instead of thinking about getting your dick wet."

Riley got angry. "Man fuck you! A nigga just trying to have some fun. Maybe you need to get your dick wet to relax your tight ass. Pause. Pussy ass nigga..." Riley mumbled as he stormed out the room, slamming the door behind him.

Huey sighed and leaned into his chair. His brother was a handful but he couldn't blame him. He was curious about where they (Jazmine) had ended up flying to in this world.

'Interesting.'

Did he mess up her life so bad that she choice-

'Wait. No. I need to stop. It's not all about me. I just need to let her go. Forget about her. Let her live in peace. Away from the Chicago. Away from the gang life. Away from... me. I need to move on. I can't be mopping around about a female.'

Huey pulled out his phone and found an old contact he hadn't hit up for months and never thought he would hit up again.

_Huey: Hey._

It only took a few seconds for the person to reply.

_Contact: Long time no talk Freeman._

_Huey: You know I been busy with the gang and shit._

_Contact: I know, that's why I'm giving you a pass. You're an important ass nigga._

_Huey: You free tonight?_

_Contact: You know my address xx _

Huey let out a tiny smirk. He was going to ignore his swollen heart and follow the dark part of his brain that was sneaking back to the for front of his mind. He was about to be like his little brother.

Everything was about to change.

* * *

**Guess who managed to put out a chapter before February like they said they woulllddd? This bitch. I know, amazing. But like yeah the next chapter is defo coming in that month, I got a whole week of exams coming up ssoooo yeah. Anywho, enough about me.**

**LavenderLuvER18: I have a love hate relationship with Jayden myself. I hate to say it but I do.**

**Briana13: This is only the beginning...**

**BoondocksFever234: A teacher vs a gangster right. Hilarious. But when she said Huey's name was a really a 'And I oop-' moment. As you said, Huey was going to get the slap for swearing at his mama. I can't even say damn around my mum. Let alone what that boy said. Woah. Who knows, maybe there might be a Freeman link up in the future? And I love the long ass reviews. Send them my waayy.**

**Chel29: Boom! Got both chapters in a week.**

**Guest 1: I feel like it is less of writers block but more about time and energy as you said but I am very glad and happy you understand. We just going to have to see what happens with Jayden and Jazmine in the next chapter, if there is anything happening. I had to throw in the gangster daddy in there. His children needed it now more than ever. Thank you for thanking me for these updates, I am looking forward to the long review you have for this like you said you would, no pressure, lool.**

**Guest 2: I got in within the same month! Better than next month right?**** I would have never managed two long ass chapters back to back, sorry lool. The money is going to have to do for now. They knew that the money wouldn't make up for what they went through. It was just a lil sum sum. Had to give them something.**

**Ite imma head out.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	30. Chapter 30: Meet The Parents

"Yes Huey!" The woman screamed in ecstasy.

Huey did one last stroke before pulling out and flopping next to her.

"Damn you need to come around here more often baby." She tried her best to catch her breath after the wild sex she just had with no other than Huey Freeman. She was a part of the lucky few that got to experience his magic stick. She moved her long braids away from her brown skin and looked at him dreamily.

"I've done told you I've been busy." Huey took of the used condom and threw it into the bin next to her bed.

"You and I both know you miss this cookie. Those five rounds showed just how much you did." She bit her lip and rubbed her fingers over Huey's hard chest.

"Yeah which is why I need to leave." Huey swung his legs off the bed when she suddenly gripped his meat. He stopped breathing.

"You're staying." She demanded him.

"Erica. What did I tell you?" He said firmly, trying his best to not give in so easily. He was a man after all, any touch there could trigger him.

She sighed and removed her hand to hold up her head instead. "Fine. Just so I can save some for later."

Huey sighed. He knew of Erica since she was 12 and he was 14 and never really talked but began to have causal sex since they were 21 and 23. It was on her 21st birthday which Riley dragged him to and they both got sloppy drunk and had drunk sex. The morning after was a shock but they both vividly remembered the nights adventure so decided to hit each other up whenever they needed a hook up. However, one took it more seriously than the other.

"I hear you're doing big things Ghost."

Huey rolled his eyes as he checked his phone. It was coming up to 2am, he was going to go do some work.

"Hearing is one thing, when you see it let me know."

He stood and began to put on his clothes that was littered on the floor.

Erica sat up fully.

"You not staying the night?" She pouted.

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because."

Her brown eyes stared at his muscular back.

"Because isn't an answer."

"It's the one I'm giving you." Huey zipped up his jeans.

She scoffed. "What's wrong with you Freeman? Is it because your little whore girlfriend left you?"

Huey paused. He looked into the dimly lit room.

'What is she... oh. How the fuck does she know about that? This neighbour hood too damn nosy.' He thought.

He slowly turned and saw Erica sitting with her arms crossed.

"Don't speak on shit you don't know Erica. That pretty little mouth of yours can get you into some serious shit one day."

"Nigga you know this mouth ain't little to be taking in that big ass dick." She smirked.

'Ok that actually caught be off guard.' He chocked inside. 'Forget about it and just leave Huey.'

Huey picked up his phone and threw on his jacket. "I'll call you if I need to fuck again." With that, he made his way out the door leaving a pissed off, naked, Erica in the bed.

"You a bitch ass nigga you know that!" She shouted after him, even though she knew he was already out her apartment. "Fuck you too!"

She breathed out heavily.

'He ain't shit! But that dick game, biiitttttccccchhhhhhh!' She bit her lip thinking about it. 'Lemme text my home girl.' She giggled before pulling out her phone.

Sex with Huey Freeman was always a trip.

* * *

"Ok explain this to me again?"

Raven sighed as they walked into the mall.

It was the day after having baby Cairo and Raven had asked her little sister Robyn to join her to shop for him. She had a long conversation with her parents last night who eventually said they were proud of her while Robyn was still in disbelief.

"Girl it's not that hard to understand." Raven told her. She was pushing a stroller that the Freeman's had already brought within the few hours they had Cairo which she was very grateful for. She just now needed to buy whatever else babies need which is why her sister was here. She looked down at the sleeping baby who was peacefully sucking on his pacifier. "Huey had found him at one of the stash houses and brought him here. We were told his parents are dead and I didn't want him to go into the system so I have decided to adopt him."

"How can you adopt an unknown baby?" Robyn asked.

"Huey is going to get some lawyers to sort all the paperwork out. We have what seems like his birth certificate so at least we know his birthday." Raven explained.

Robyn couldn't believe her sister. "This is a big ass step you're taking especially since you still in the gang, which you're still injured because of. You even named him Cairo which I'm surprised you ain't bursting out in tears about it. Plus, everyone knows you, you know how weird it's going to look with you popping out of nowhere with a little white baby."

Raven rolled her eyes. "First of all, I know what I do and trust me I gotta lot of thinking to do. I'm managing the strip club too so I can spend more time doing that than the gang shit. Second of all, I don't burst out crying at Cairo's name you dead wrong for saying that. He was my best friend and baby Cairo is going to be my best friend who I will be able to protect this time. Third of all, fuck what everyone else has to say. I don't give a fuck. And why everyone keeps calling him white? Yeah he got green eyes and blonde hair but he looks like he's getting dark and he has black features which means he definitely had a mixed parent."

Raven took a deep breath. She knew her sister would ask all these questions but at once was a lot to take it and her ribs weren't healed yet. Robyn has the best interest but it would soon rub Raven the wrong way which is why she didn't blow up on her yet.

"You can't blame me for saying what I'm seeing. All this shit is crazy to me."

"Trust me. It's crazy to me too." Raven told her sister seriously.

They walked into a baby store which was suggested by Mackenzie and began to look around.

"So, baby mama, what you need?" Robyn smirked.

Raven laughed. "I never thought I would be called a baby mama. Anyway, we have a stroller which is also a car seat so we good on the traveling part. We need clothes, bottles, pacifier, crib, toys, shoes, basically anything and everything."

Robyn rubbed her hands together before going over and picking up a big basket. "I do love myself a bit of shopping."

"I know that's why I dragged you."

The two sisters began to look around and throwing cute outfits and toys into the basket when an assist came over.

"Hey, can I help you with anything?" The woman smiled at them.

Raven smiled back. "Yes, would you be able to show us the best baby furniture. This little guy here was kind of a surprise so I have nothing ready for him."

"Don't you worry. You're not the only last-minute mother we've had. Right this way." The shop assistant walked them to an area that had everything they needed. "He's such an adorable baby."

The women looked down at the still sleeping baby. "Yeah he is and I should make his bottle soon, he should be waking up soon."

"Aww you already know his routine." Robyn lightly pushed Raven.

"Girl I have to. Let me start preparing it now while you look. I trust you to get something nice."

"Ohh this crib is so cute. You should get this for nephew." Robyn commented as she saw a white and royal blue crib.

"Nephew?" Raven raised an eyebrow.

"My sis has a baby, making it my nephew. Duh." She rolled her eyes.

"If you like that crib, we have a matching high chair which you can get a deal on." The woman told them.

"I will very much appreciate that." Raven smiled at her. "We will come over once we finished getting a few other things."

With that, the sisters were alone again.

"Oh my gosh! Look at this adorable onesie!" Robyn pouted as she picked it up to show her sister.

It said 'The Prince to a Queen' in gold writing.

"You are getting this and in 3 different colours and 3 different sizes." Robyn told her sister.

"Why you getting bigger sizes, you don't see how tiny he is?" Raven shook her head.

"Because like mama always said, he'll grow into it." Robyn smirked as she went to pick up more things. "Alright I think we're done here."

"Ok."

They went over to pay for their items. After finally finding a way to carry the furniture, they walked out the store to do more shopping.

"We really should've done this last." Raven shook her head.

"Or order it to your house."

"That part."

Just then, Cairo began to stir.

"Ohh he's waking up. This is the first I'm going to see him awake." Robyn grinned.

Cairo moved his arms and legs before pushing out his pacifier. Once that left his mouth, he began to cry.

"Cairo. Its ok baby." Raven stopped by a nearby bench and took him out his stroller. Even when she tried to soothe him, he still cried. "Can you hand me his bottle please?" Raven asked Robyn who did so.

Raven popped off the lid and began to feed Cairo who hungrily drunk the milk.

Robyn looked at her sister. "You seem very natural."

"I did help mom with you and I always around our baby cousins. You pick up a thing or two but having your own is a huge responsibility so I still got things to learn. It's not all fun and games sis."

"Well it will for me. I'm going to be the cool, funny auntie." She grinned.

Raven gave her a side eye. "You're the only auntie."

Robyn grin dropped. "Ok and?" She rolled her eyes.

Cairo finished his bottle and Raven burped him. She sat him up so he could look at Robyn. "Cairo, this is your auntie Robyn. You can call her if you have any fashion disasters and she will hook you up ok."

Cairo just sucked on his fist in response.

"Hey Cairo! I am your one and only auntie and if you don't want your mama to know anything, I'm your girl." Robyn looked at her sister. "I cannot get over how green his eyes are. Doesn't that remind you of the bitch Huey was fucking with? What's her name? Jade?"

'Right. I really haven't caught her up.' Raven thought.

"Jazmine, and we made up. The time we spent kidnapped made us have a mutual understanding. We were in the same boat and I only really chat shit about her and her friends because I felt as if they were a distraction to the gang. Even though it was proven right, I still can't blame them, they didn't know what they were getting into but now they are away from here so everything is becoming stabilised."

"Damn. I really be off in my own little world... I'm sorry for not seeing you more." Robyn frowned.

Raven put her arm around her little sister. "Don't you worry, I wouldn't want you around the shit I do. Anyway, you want to hold him?"

Robyn instantly began to smile and reached out for Cairo. Once she got a hold of him, she began to talk to him and take pictures with him. Raven watched the two and knew they would get along just fine.

The sisters spent the next few hours bonding with each other and the new addition to the family while also shopping for him too. They were going to spoil him. The whole time it made Raven realise that she may have made the best decision in her life. This baby boy was going to change her life forever.

* * *

After the long day of shopping, Raven went home and had a nap alongside Cairo. They both slept peacefully for two hours before Cairo woke up for a feed and he was very upset.

"Wahhhhhh! Wahhh!" He screamed at the top of his lungs.

Raven bounced him in the bouncer she had brought earlier. It was the first thing she set up before she went to sleep and she was glad she did.

"It's ok, mama is getting your milk now." Raven told him as she tried to bounce him and make his bottle but he didn't care.

"Ahhh! Ahhhhh!" Cairo continued to scream.

"Ok ok, I'm done." Raven gently picked Cairo out the bouncer and put the bottle straight into his mouth. Immediately, he latched on and greedily drank the milk. "Yeah you wanna be quiet now."

Raven watched her son drink in wonder. Her son. It was still crazy to think about. She didn't even have to do the long 9 months carrying. She had no baby shower, no gender reveal, no doctor's appointment, no man, nothing. She just suddenly had a baby.

She knew people around her were going to be shocked, her family too, but she didn't care. Every minute of the day she was falling more and more in love with this baby that was curled up in her arms. He was beautiful and she was glad she met him and now had him.

Cairo finished his bottle and Raven burped him which made him release a big on.

"Damn, you were really hungry." She said out loud. He looked at her confused. "You are so adorable." She laid him on the bed and leaned over him. "You're going to be big in no time the way you're eating, I guarantee it." His green eyes looked up at her brown ones as he sucked on his fist. "I already can say that you are the best surprise that has happened to me. The bound we are going to build is going to be beautiful I know people will be jealous that I got such a cool baby and your friends when you're older will tease you about how fine your mama is." She laughed to herself and Cairo started moving around. "I named you Cairo after a dear friend of mine, my best friend... his name was Cairo. I never talk about him because it was always painful to think about. The day I lost him... I felt as if I lost part of myself and you being here, in a time where everything has gone to shit must be a sign. When I laid my eyes on you, the only name that came to my head was Cairo. I am here to protect you as your mother. I failed my best friend, I won't fail my son. You're my son Cairo."

The whole time Raven talked, baby Cairo looked at her like he understood every word.

That's when he smiled.

Raven gasped. "Your first smile!" She hurriedly found her phone and pulled up the camera so it was on them both. "Show auntie Rob what you just did." He looked at the camera lost. "Smile for mama." Cairo looked up and saw Raven. He smiled at her. Raven squealed. "Awww you're so cute!" She began to smoother him in kisses which made him breath harder as if he wanted to laugh but he couldn't just yet. "I can't wait to see you grow." She told him truthfully after she sent the video to her sister. "So, what are we going to do tonight?" Raven asked Cairo who just looked confused.

Laughing to herself, Raven picked up Cairo and made her way into the bed to take some much-needed relaxation.

* * *

"Shit!"

Jazmine's voice got caught in her throat as she rode out her orgasm. The third one for the day.

"Hm. I still not used to grown woman Jazmine's orgasms. I might need to hear it again."

"Give me a break Jayden."

Jazmine slide of the counter, picked up her panties and walked over to his couch.

It had been a week since they had left Chicago and things in Woodcrest were already starting to turn sideways. The main problem was that Jazmine gave in to her sexual demons and was now receiving regular dick from Jayden.

Already!

She needed a distraction and he was a pretty good distraction.

Jayden slipped on his boxers and flopped down next to her, pulling her into his arms.

They stayed in their position for a few minutes in silence, both tired from their recent activities.

"So when are you going to talk to your parents?" He asked out of nowhere after a few seconds of silence.

Jazmine instantly sat up. "We just fucked on the counter and the first thing you say is when I am going to speak to my parents?" She snorted. "Mood killer much."

"Sorry. It's just, you haven't talked about them and I know you haven't seen them since you have arrived."

It was true. She hasn't seen them and wasn't in a rush to do so. Whether they stayed here permanently was still in the air so she didn't want to see them just yet.

"They still have me on Facebook and my number never changed." Jazmine rolled her eyes as she moved from his warm embrace.

"JD just reach out to them. They miss you-"

"Sure they do-"

"Any parent will miss their child-"

"Only if that child wasn't shaking her ass for money."

Jayden and Jazmine stared intensely at each other, neither one breaking eye contact. Jazmine sighed.

"Just leave it alone Jayden." She tore her eyes away to put on her clothes.

Jayden watched her half naked body becoming covered and instantly missed seeing it in front of him and in his reach.

"Where you going?" He asked.

"Home."

"You mean your hotel?" Jazmine whipped her head around and looked at him angrily.

"You really know how to piss a bitch off don't you."

Jayden quickly jumped up and ran over to hug her from behind. "I'm sorry JD. I didn't mean it like that." He silently took in her sweet scent that he just became familiarized with again. "I'm going to take you out tonight to dinner to make up for it."

Jazmine thought about it. She hasn't been out to a nice dinner in a very long time. It would be nice to get dressed up for something different from the club. She sighed and turned in his embrace then lifted her arms to rest on his shoulders.

"Fine but you're paying."

Jayden smirked. "I wouldn't have it any other way." He dipped down and captured her lips in a short kiss. "Hmm. Have I told you I missed you?"

Jazmine rolled her eyes as she pulled away. "About a thousand time. Make sure your ass is on time to pick me up." She began to walk to the door.

"You don't even know when I'm coming to pick you up."

"8pm sharp!" Jazmine shouted with her back still facing him. "Later Jayden!"

Jayden smirked as he watched the door close. Every time she came back over, he was still in disbelief that she was here. Nearly every day after class, he would run back home and text Jazmine to see if she wanted to come through and every time she said yes. The sex was mind blowing. He guessed the time away meant they learnt new skills and he knew Jazmine felt the same. If she didn't, she wouldn't have come back. The only problem is, she was quick to leave. She didn't stay overnight; she was always out the door no matter what time it was. Jayden felt upset about it but couldn't blame her, they needed to take things slow and he was ready for that.

The only problem was, he was moving to Chicago.

He can't just forget about the job he already accepted because of some girl, even if the some girl is Jazmine. He was leaving by the end of next week. It was soon. His stuff was packed he was just waiting for everything to be ready in Chicago. He wished he could take her with him but he knew she wasn't ready for that. She just got away from that man, she wouldn't be ready to go back so soon. It wouldn't be fair on her. That's why he hasn't officially asked her to be his girl, he was going to wait.

They were each other's first everything. Most importantly, first love. He will never forget her. There has yet to be a girl that Jayden would look to as highly as he did Jazmine.

He found his phone and searched for a contact he hasn't messaged for years, hoping it was still active. He had a plan.

A few seconds past and he saw a message.

'_Hey Jayden! It has been so long, how are you?'_

He smirked and replied. Tonight was going to be good.

* * *

On the other side of town, Ming and Cindy stood in front of a large glass window.

"Are you sure you're ready for this?" Ming asked her friend.

"No. Are you?" Cindy threw back.

"Nope. But we already here so it's too late."

Ming and Cindy looked at each other before grabbing each other's hands and walking inside.

They were getting strange looks but ignored it. Everyone around them were in business attires while they were in very casual wear. They stood out like a sore thumb.

They walked towards the front desk.

"Welcome to Shape You, how may I help you?" The receptionist routinely asked.

"Hello, we would like to see the CEO's." Ming told her.

"Alright." She began to type on the computer. "Have you booked an appointment?" She asked.

"No. We're their children." Cindy told her annoyingly.

The woman looked up shocked.

"Oh." She began to look at the two women in detail. "Oh!"

"Yes yes we get it, you see the resemblance. Can we see them now?" Cindy asked impatiently.

"Please." Ming scowled her.

"What she said."

The receptionist was stuck. She never knew they had daughters. "Did- uh- did you book an appointment?"

Cindy took a deep breath. She was getting annoyed. "Ming. If she doesn't get them, I will make a scene."

Ming turned to the woman. "You do not want to see this girl cause a scene. Love and Hip Hop would want her." The woman looked confused so Ming broke it down for her. "Shits about to get crazy."

Cindy stepped back and smirked. Her eyes found its way to a vase sitting on the side. "Oh pretty." She pushed it over, letting it crash to the floor. "I guess it was pretty."

The receptionist began to dial some numbers quickly while Ming shook her head.

"Should've listened baby girl."

Security began to make their way towards Cindy who had the same smug look on her face.

"All I want to do is see Mr and Mrs McPhearson and Mr and Mrs Long-Dou. Is that so hard to ask for!" Cindy shouted, making everyone turn to her.

"Ma'am. We're going to have to ask you to leave the premises." One of the security guards said.

"Not until we see the CEO's." Ming told them as she stepped up next to Cindy.

"We cannot do that-"

"Call them! Call them right now and say that Cindy and Ming are here. I bet you they will let us up." Cindy crossed her arms over her chest.

"If they say they don't know us, we will leave peacefully. If you don't call them... well, this one is going to be like a bull in a china shop. It won't be nice." Ming visualised for them.

Whenever the group of girls would get themselves into sticky situations, Ming and Jazmine were the words while Royalty and Cindy were the action. That was why it was always best for 1 to be with Cindy or Royalty because if it was just up to them two, they would swing on anyone and they knew they could win. They have won a lot.

The security guard shared a looked before sighing and going over to the receptionist.

"Call them so we can get them out of here." The short one told her.

The woman meekly nodded before dialling a number.

"Hello sir, I have two women by the names of Cindy and Ming here saying they are your daughters..." She looked up at the girls. "Yes they do... oh ok. I will send them right up." She hung up the phone and looked at the two-smirking woman. "Top floor on your right."

"It wasn't that hard was it." Cindy turned to walk away when the security was still looking at her. "You heard the girl, I got somewhere to be. Move." She gestured with her hands for them to move out her way which they did not too happily.

Ming shook her head as they walked towards the elevator, still getting strange looks. "Someone is using their white privilege."

Cindy smirked. "I would say this is more rich kid privilege."

She pressed the button to the top floor and waited silently until they reached the floor. The elevator dinged and they walked to the right where they saw a large meeting round that was surrounded by only glass. They made direct eye contact with their parents.

"Damn, we didn't even get a chance to prepare ourselves properly." Cindy mumbled.

"Come on Cynthia." Ming smirked at her friends annoyed facial expression as she heard her full name. She knew she was going to hear that come out her parents mouth soon.

Their parents watched them intensely as they walked towards the door. Ming lead the way and walked inside with Cindy right behind her.

"Mother! Father! It's good to see you!" Cindy grinned as she sat in the chair at the opposite end, Ming next to her.

"This is quite a surprise, to see both of you here, back in Woodcrest." Cindy's father, Paul, said as he looked at his only child.

"Hey dad." Cindy smiled.

Paul smiled back. "Hello Cindy."

The two locked eyes, blue clashing with blue. Despite his brown hair, the two looked identical.

Susan cleared her throat. "Hello Cynthia."

Cindy faught back her eye roll. "Mother."

As seen, Cindy was a daddy's girl ever since she could speak. Her and her mother have always had friction.

* * *

_20 years ago_

_5-year-old Cindy had just come back from a long day of shopping that she was forced to do with her mother. She hated shopping._

"_I can't wait for you to wear this dress for dinner tonight. You are going to look amazing!" Her mother told her daughter as they walked inside their mansion. "Go show your father the dress while I go upstairs." Susan lightly pushed her daughter to the living room where she could hear the tv playing._

"_Ok mother." Cindy sighed reluctantly. She walked to where her father was and saw him leaning intensely on his knees, eyes glued to the screen. She looked up and saw men in different coloured clothes throwing and bouncing a ball around. "Hey daddy."_

_Paul turned when he heard his daughters voice. "Hey baby girl. Come watch the game with daddy." He patted the space next to him and she ran to sit there, throwing the bag to the floor._

_They sat there for a few more minutes before Cindy asked a question. "Daddy what's that?"_

_Paul looked to his daughter and to the screen. He saw the fascination on her face and smirked. "This, my child, is basketball. It's a sport daddy used to play in high school and was pretty good at it too."_

_Cindy tilted her head sideways, making her straight, blonde hair swing a little. "It looks hard."_

"_It's not that hard if you actually put in the work."_

_They sat there for a few more minutes, watching the game go back and forth._

_Cindy's bright, blue eyes didn't move away from the game. It looked fun to her. She wanted to play basketball and be like them._

"_Daddy is there girls that play basketball?"_

"_Of course there is sweetie. There are hundreds of women that are just as talented as these men- Yes!" Paul jumped up in celebration as the buzzer rang and his team won. He turned back to see Cindy's shocked face. "Sorry. Daddy's team just won." He watched as his daughter looked back at the tv in wonder and asked a question that would change her life forever. He sat back down next to her. "Do you want to play basketball?" He asked her._

_Her face looked up. "You will teach me?!" She questioned excitedly._

_He smiled. "Only if you want to." She nodded her head so hard, he thought she was going to make herself dizzy. He chuckled. "Alright let's start."_

"_Now?" She looked at him confused._

"_Yes. The earlier was start, the better." He scooped her up in his arm and jogged to the garage where he kept his old basketball and hoop. "You know, if you get into this, I will build a basketball court outside for you."_

_She gasped. "You do that?" He nodded and Cindy wrapped her arms around his neck in a hug. "Thank you daddy!"_

_He hugged her back. "Anything for my little princess." He put her only the floor. "Now. For your first training session."_

_For the next 20 minutes, Paul taught little Cindy the beginning steps of basketball and he was surprised how quickly she understood everything. It seemed as if she was a natural. All she needed was time and practice and she will be the best Woodcrest had ever seen._

"_Cynthia! Cynthia! Paul! Where are you two?!" They heard Susan call from inside._

"_Oh oh." Cindy mumbled as she took deep breaths._

"_Oh oh indeed." Paul agreed with his daughter._

_Her mother stormed into the garage with the bag Cindy had in her hand and her blonde hair in rollers._

"_Paul! What the fuck are you doing in-" She sniffed the air. "Ugh. It stinks in here and-" She gasped. "Cynthia! You're all sweaty! You both are! You both need to get in the shower now, otherwise we will be late. I can't believe you did this Paul." Susan crossed her arms and shook her head._

_Paul held his hands up in defence. "She just wanted to learn the game."_

"_We're not 17 anymore and she's a girl. She shouldn't be playing such a sport, if anything, she should do gymnastics. It's a sport and one for girls." Paul had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. "Anyway, don't you think this dress is pretty." Susan pulled out the dress she had just brought Cindy and his eyes widen._

_It was baby pink and the bottom half was massive. Cindy looked at it with disgust._

"_It's... pretty all right." Was the best answer he could give his wife._

"_I know. Now stop wasting time and get dress. We need to leave in 2 hours." With that, Susan turned and walked out the door._

_Cindy looked up at her father. "Daddy. Don't make me wear that dress."_

_Paul sighed as he lifted his daughter into his arms. He loved his wife but she has been controlling Cindy's life ever since she found out she was having a girl. She knew this wouldn't happen if she had a boy._

"_I'll tell you what. If you wear that dress tonight and dresses any other night we have to go to fancy dinners, I promise you to teach you how to play basketball whenever I can. I will make sure I put it in my schedule and get a basketball court built for us."_

_Cindy gasped. "Really?!" He nodded. "Pinkie promises?" She held out her tiny pinkie to her father that wrapped his larger one around hers._

"_Pinkie promise."_

_Cindy squealed and hugged her father. "I love you so much daddy!"_

_Paul hugged her back. "I love you too sweetie."_

* * *

Present

"Cynthia, what happened to your lip?" Her mother asked.

"Ran into a pole." Was the answer she gave. Her lip was healing but there was still a little cut left which should be gone by next week which she was grateful for.

Susan sighed. "Did you get into trouble? How much do you owe them? Is that why you got beat up?"

"No mother. I was being clumsy and ran into a pole like I said."

"More like you was on it." Susan rolled her eyes.

"Susan. Come on, our child is here now, can we just be happy for once?" Paul asked his wife who just rolled her eyes. He turned to his daughter. "I missed you."

Cindy smiled lightly, automatically feeling guilty. Her dad was her best friend who she could talk to about anything and he was the one to always look out for her and taught her how to play basketball which she grew up loving.

"I miss you too daddy. I'm sorry I never reached out to you as much as I should have."

Paul shook his head, feeling the tears threaten to prick his eyes. "Don't be sorry. I'm just glad you're here and you too Ming. It has been so long since I have seen you girls. How's Jazmine and Royalty?"

"Hey Paul, it's nice to see you too and they're good too just handling their own things." Paul nodded as Ming turned to her own parents.

"Mom. Dad."

"Ming." Ken Long-Dou replied.

"You're back in Woodcrest." Nora Long-Dou looked her daughter up and down.

Ming nodded. "I guess I am."

Tension fell over the room. Ming and her parents didn't have a bad relationship. They were civil a lot of the time even if they could be pushy when it came to her education and overall lifestyle. When they found out she was stripper, her parents didn't speak to her for a good 6 months. When they got in contact with her again, Ming told them she was dropping out of college and from there, their relationship has been rocky and almost none existent. Her parents wanted Ming to continue the family business but it doesn't look like it is going to happen.

* * *

_16-year-old Ming was sitting down at the dinner table doing extra assignments her parents made her teachers get her when they walked in._

"_Let me see your work." Was the first thing her father said._

_Ming sighed and showed him her work._

_He checked it over. "6 out of 16 of these are wrong. Do them all again."_

"_You can't just tell me which ones are wrong so I can do it again?"_

_Her mother shook her head. "No because then you won't learn."_

_Ming sighed. "I don't think I can do this right now."_

"_Like hell you are." Nora put the paper back in front of her. "You do this now or you're grounded for two weeks."_

"_Is that really necessary?"_

_Ken looked at his daughter. "We just want you to be ready for the pressure of college. You're going to take over the family business we are building which is going to be even harder. We love you enough to help you the way we are." He kissed the top of her head. "We will leave you to get back to work."_

_Ming held her breath until she heard her parents leave the house, that's when she burst out in tears. Her grandfather had just passed away and she was taking it hard. He introduced her to kickball which she loved and still loved, despite his forceful ways. Their relationship was rocky once she moved to America but he still showed he cared for her every now and then. He would always cheer her up somehow. Her parents were drowning themselves in work as their way of grieving, leaving Ming to grieve on her own. A child should never be allowed to grieve on her own but she was left to._

_There was no kickball team in Woodcrest so she couldn't even play in his honour. She was heartbroken and her parents wasn't there to help her._

* * *

"Are you girls staying here?" Paul asked.

"Hopefully not for long." Ming answered for them.

"Then why did you come back?" Nora asked the woman.

Ming and Cindy shared a look, wondering what the best answer was. "We needed a break from Chicago."

Ken leaned forward. "So does that means you're no longer acting like a little whore?"

"Ken!" Paul shouted. Out of Cindy's mom and Ming and Jazmine's parents, Cindy's father was the only one that didn't treat them any different. It made Cindy feel even more guilty for the lack of communication she had with her father because of her trouble relationship with her mother.

"I'm just saying something they should be used to be hearing by now."

Ming rolled her eyes. "You know you could act like you're happy to see us."

"Have you gone back to college?" Nora asked.

"No."

"Do you have a different job?" Susan added.

"No." Cindy crossed her arms.

"Then we have nothing to talk about." Ken lowered his head to look back at his paperwork.

Paul took a deep breath to stop himself from exploding. "You know, you three are fucking disgusting." The older adults looked at him shocked. "Our daughters are here wanting to see us and you're all acting like fucking babies. Grow the fuck up. They obviously didn't want to go into this line of business but no, we forced them to go off to college and study something they didn't want to do now they have become exotic dancers. They wanted to escape from us because we drove them away." He turned to his daughter and the woman who was like his other daughter. "Ming, Cindy. I am so sorry for their behaviour. They may not change their mind any time soon but just know that I love you both very very much. I just hope you stay safe and keep in contact with me at least."

Ming and Cindy shared a look. It was as if Paul has been waiting to say that for a very long time. He was always there for all four of the girls. Every competition, every game, he was there. He was like all of their fathers that loved them unconditionally and in this moment of their life, they needed his unconditional love.

Paul stood up and made his way over to Ming and Cindy. "Come on." He held open his arms and the girls ran straight into them. He kissed both of their heads. "I am so proud of you both."

"But we haven't even done anything." Cindy said in his chest.

He shocked his head. "Doesn't matter. I am always proud of you."

Susan, Nora and Ken all looked at each other. They couldn't believe how easily Paul was to embrace them after all the time and money they invested in their children going off to have a good education to work for the same company they built. They were supposed to continue but no, they chose the pole.

The moment was cut off by the phone ringing.

"Yes." Nora answered quickly, happy that this moment was broken up.

"Your 11:30 is here." The voice told them.

"Good. Send them up." Ken instructed her and hung up.

Cindy's father pulled away from the girls with a sigh. "We'll catch up with you soon."

"Ok daddy." Cindy said. Paul heart swelled as he got flashbacks toddler Cindy calling him all the time. He missed those moments.

"Goodbye Ming."

"Goodbye parents."

"Bye Cynthia."

"Mother."

With that, Ming and Cindy left the room of their parents are made their way to the elevator.

Paul watched his daughters leave before turning back to his partners in life and business.

"You couldn't act more disgusting."

Ken rolled his eyes. "Their profession is disgusting."

Susan scoffed. "Profession. That's something to call it."

Paul shook his head and took his seat once again. They could really get on his nerves sometimes.

"Well... that went better than I thought. Pictured people flying across tables." Cindy smirked as she pressed the button so they could leave.

"At least one of your parents acknowledged you. I didn't get shit." Ming sighed frustratingly.

Cindy light shoved her. "Hey, don't worry too much about it. Toxic family members are not something we need so it's their problem if they don't want to change. Plus, my dad is your dad."

"Yeah I know."

Before they could continue their conversation, the elevator door opened but before they could step in, a group of people started making their way out. Ming and Cindy stepped to the side and watched all the men and women in suits step out.

Once it was empty, they tried to make their way inside.

"Um excuse me."

They turned to see two males in business attire like the others. They had dark hair, tanned, light brown eyes and bright, white smiles. Twins.

"Sorry to stop you, my name is Mason."

"And my name is Hunter."

They held out their hands.

Cindy and Ming shared a look before placing it into their hands which they simultaneously kissed.

"Ohh fancy." Cindy smirked.

"I don't believe we have seen you around her." Hunter said.

"Why would you?" Ming asked, forgetting all about holding open the elevator doors.

"Well, our father is partners with the CEO's so we are here quiet often and not many people come to this floor. You must be special." Mason observed.

"If the daughter of the CEO's means special." Cindy shrugged. "Then I guess we are."

They looked at them surprised.

"Daughters? I have never heard any mention of daughters." Hunter told them.

Ming rolled her eyes. "That's what we've been hearing."

"Hunter, Mason. The meeting is about to commence." A woman called from the door to the meeting room.

The twins sighed. "Well, business calls."

"I guess it does." Cindy smirked at them.

"But this is a business I am sure me and my brother would not like to miss." They pulled out their phones. "If you do us the pleasure of putting your numbers into our phones so we can find out more about the mystery daughters of Mr and Mrs Long-Dou and Mr and Mrs McPhearson."

Laughing, Ming took Hunter's phone while Cindy took Mason's. They quickly typed in their number before calling the elevator again.

The elevator came and the girls stepped in when the boys realised something.

"Wait! What's your names?"

"Check your phones!" Was the answer they gave before the doors closed.

Confused, they looked at the screen and saw 'Ming' and 'Cindy' with their numbers.

"Jackpot baby." Mason grinned as he high fived his twin.

"And that's how you do it." Hunter laughed as they made their way inside the room. It was going to be a long meeting but the girls were the only thing on their minds.

* * *

Royalty was out shopping on her own since Ming and Cindy went to see their parents and Jazmine was occupied with Jayden. Whenever she was alone, she would be deep in thought about how her life turned out. Her aunt came over from Jamaica to America in order for her to receive a better education and here she was: 23, a stripper, no man, no kids, nothing. She had no one in Woodcrest for her. She always blamed herself for the way Cindy, Ming and Jazmine's life turned out. They were never meant to be strippers, only Royalty.

* * *

_The second year of college was starting up and Royalty was stressed. Jazmine, Cindy and Ming were all starting their third year since they all took a gap year to travel, work and volunteer and also so they could be closer to Royalty in school years. Her aunt had already moved back to Jamaica, deciding that America was not somewhere she wanted to live any longer so she was on her own._

_They were in Chicago for college since Cindy loved Chicago Bulls and always wanted to go there and Ming just wanted to get away from her parents. Royalty and Jazmine didn't mind much about the location so they settled with Chicago. A lot of people thought they were crazy._

_The 19-year-old sat in her room looking at all the bills she had. Her and the girls were renting their own apartment off campus but she still wanted to pull her weight with rent, groceries etc. Then she had the overall college to pay for and she could feel herself swimming in debt. She didn't want to worry her family so kept quiet and had just been fired from a local diner for punching a man unconscious because he groped her._

'_Pig.' She rolled her eyes as she remembered watching his body slump in his seat._

_She had no idea how she was going to pay for everything and she didn't want to worry the girls. They were busy living their best lives finally being 21 and drinking legally._

_Royalty pulled out her phone and went on Instagram to distracted her stressful mind. That's when she came across a video and an idea popped into her head. After contemplating about it for a few minutes, she finally made up her mind, all she needed to do was wait for the rest to come home._

_Jazmine, Ming and Cindy came back home an hour before midnight._

"_Roy Roy! You're coming out tonight, we're going to sneak you in." Cindy said as she threw down some bags._

"_We even brought you an outfit so they wouldn't look at you twice, even though you already look our age." Jazmine laughed._

_When they didn't get a response, they all stopped and took a properly look to see a zoned-out Royalty sitting on the couch._

"_Hey lil sis, why do you look stressed?" Ming looked at her with concern._

_Royalty took a deep breath. "So, I got fired from the diner."_

_They gasped. "Why what happened?"_

"_Some stupid guy touched me so I punched the consciousness out of him and they fired me."_

"_That's some bullshit, it's the guys fault not yours." Jazmine crossed her arms in frustration._

"_I know but now I need another job to help pay-"_

"_Baby girl you we done already told you, you don't need to worry about any of that shit." Cindy sat next to her._

"_I don't want to be living off you all which is why... I am going to become a stripper." Royalty dropped on them. She said it easier than she thought._

"_I'm sorry- Did I- You said- A stripper?!" Jazmine stuttered._

_Royalty nodded. "Yeah look." She took out her phone and found the video she found earlier. It was a stripper sitting in a pool of money while her friend walked around with 5 stacks in her hands. "You see all this money? I can get money like that, I know I can. You've seen the way I dance, stripping will be nothing. Yeah I would need to show more skin but I'll be cool with it."_

_Ming raised an eyebrow. "Royalty. This isn't some walk in the park, this is stripping we're talking about."_

_Royalty nodded. "I know. The whole time you were gone I studied the pros and cons and the only way I can stay in college is by getting racks of money."_

"_You know we can help with tha-" Jazmine tried to say but Royalty cut her off._

"_I love you guys!" She started off as she stood in the middle of the room, getting all of their attention. "But I can't accept all this hand out, I can't. You've guys have always taken care of me and made sure I never felt left out of your comfy, rich lifestyles. I really appreciate that. Now I'm an adult and need to figure and work shit out for myself. I don't want to be begging you for money when I can find a way to make some of my own. I'm going there tonight so the sooner I start, the sooner I can get my money."_

_They all starred at each other in silence and just allowed seconds to pass without saying anything. That's when Cindy spoke up first._

"_Ite. Let's go."_

"_Huh?" Royalty looked confused._

"_You said you going tonight so we're going tonight."_

"_You don't have to come with me." Royalty told her._

"_First of all, you think I'm going to let you walk up into any club on your own you must be crazy. Second of all, I won't just be tagging along, imma be joining." Cindy said in determination._

_Royalty looked at her shocked. "What?"_

"_And me." Ming stepped up._

"_Me too." Jazmine smiled. She wasn't sure what she was signing up to but trusted her sisters judgement._

_Royalty started getting emotional and shook her head. "You don't have to do this."_

"_We're doing it anyway." Ming smirked._

"_But you don't need to stoop down to my level-"_

"_Girl if you chat shit about yourself again I will slap you across the face." Cindy joked._

_Jazmine pulled Royalty into a hug. "Fuck the levels. We're all the same Roy Roy."_

_Royalty let the tears leave her eyes. "Did I ever tell you guys I love you?"_

_Ming and Cindy joined in with the hug. "I mean yeah."_

"_We love you too or whatever."_

_That night, they began to get ready, all nervous about what was going to happen._

"_What was the name about the club again?" Jazmine asked as she applied on her makeup._

"_The Blue Moon." Royalty answered as she done her edges._

"_I guess that's a nice name." Ming shrugged as she strapped on her heels._

"_You know what we forgot, our stripper names." Cindy half joked._

_Royalty looked confused. "What do you mean our? You guys are serious?"_

_The other three girls laughed. "You're our baby sis, no way we were going to let you do something as crazy as this without us by your side."_

"_You don't have to-"_

"_But we are. Deal with it." Cindy lightly tapped her head making Royalty roll her eyes._

"_So who got names picked out?" Ming questioned._

_They all went quiet for a few seconds._

"_What about a cartoon character?" Jazmine suggested._

"_Like who?" Cindy pushed._

_Jazmine sunk in her chair. "I have no clue."_

"_Countries? Actually no that's shit." Royalty frowned._

_They sat there thinking for a while longer. Jazmine stared at herself in the mirror, trying to find an alter ego that was confident in her body. She looked down and her eyes travelled back up. That's when it hit her._

"_My eyes." She whispered._

"_Huh?"_

_Jazmine laughed. "My eyes! Everyone says my eyes look like emerald's so my name can be Emerald!"_

_Everyone nodded, liking that idea._

"_I love diamonds so I can be Diamond."_

"_I love red so I can be Ruby."_

"_And I guess my eyes have been compared to sapphires every now and then so Sapphire it is."_

_They all looked at each other, pleased at what they have come up with._

"_We're pretty fucking awesome if I do say so myself." Cindy commented making them all laugh._

"_Right? Now let's roll out!" Royalty lead the group out the door and to the car they shared and went to the club, all holding different emotions._

_As they walked inside, they were instantly met with loud music, men and half naked women._

"_I never thought the day I attend a strip club was to be joining one." Ming said as she looked around._

"_Well if you don't wanna do it, you don't have to. All I know is that Diamond is being made, tonight."_

"_And so will the rest. Sapphire is ready to shake this little amount of ass she got." Cindy smirked._

"_People thought cheerleading would be useless. Emerald is about to pull out some cheerleading moves very soon."_

_Royalty shook her head as they began to walk to what looked like the manager's office. "You guys are crazy."_

_They walked to the office door and knocked._

"_Come in!" They heard a male voice call out so they walked in. "Hello ladies, names Louis. How can I help you?" He grinned as he looked them up and down. He knew what they were here for, he just wanted to hear them say it._

"_Hey... we were looking to work here." Jazmine spoke up first._

_Louis smirked. "And your names?"_

_The girls all looked at each, this was the first time they would be testing out their names._

"_Diamond."_

"_Sapphire."_

"_Ruby."_

"_Emerald."_

_Louis nodded in thoughts. "Good names, good names... you look good which is a plus but can you dance? There is no point in coming here looking to work and your ass can't shake something. Not going to get me much money by standing there."_

_Royalty crossed her arms. "What mi look like to you? Mi look like one poppy show?" She spoke in Patois._

_Louis looked at her confused. "I take that as a yes... anyway. How about I give you a group name? I have a couple of group acts that have a group name and I know this group will stay in people's mouths... Gem's. Yeah. Everyone will call you Gem's as a collective. Got a nice ring to it." Louis looked proud of himself._

_The girls couldn't deny that it did sound good. It worked out in their favour and still related to the names they picked out._

_Royalty looked at her sisters. "I guess we're the Gems."_

_And from there, the rest is history._

* * *

Present

Royalty was pulled out of her daydream when she heard someone clear their throat next to her. She slowly turned her head and saw an older male that resembled the actor, Matthew McConaughey, a lot.

"Did you-?" She half questioned.

He looked around which made Royalty cautious. He gave her another look up and down before asking in a low voice, "You're Diamond, aren't you?"

'Oh he a creep. Got it.' She thought to herself. She turned to him.

"Possibly."

He chuckled which Royalty though sounded youthful. "Yeah you're defiantly are. That body and charisma is something that club needed and your brought that all in a matter of seconds on the stage."

Royalty smirked as she acted as if she was looking for clothes, wondering where this conversation was going. "I see you was there that night."

"Yeah and I was wondering if you were going to be there more often. I would actually be enjoying myself if I saw you there."

'Old man still got the moves I see.' She laughed in her head.

"Maybe I am. You paying?" She asked.

He shot her a smile. "For you? I'm willing to throw down a lot of money."

She pretended to be thinking. "Hmm I don't know... I might be rolling through there tonight."

"Then I guess I might be... rolling through too."

Royalty couldn't help but laugh out loud at his awkwardness of the phrase. "Ok Mr Silver."

"Ohh." He stepped closer to her. "I have never heard such a nickname... it leaving your lips sounds very alluring."

Royalty smirked. "You're a flirty one isn't you."

He shrugged. "Only when a beautiful woman like you is standing in front of me."

"Hm. Ok. Well, I found my outfit so I guess I'll be going..." She trailed off, wondering his name.

"You can call me Mr Silver."

She held out her hand for him to shake, instead, he planted a quick but soft kiss on her brown skin.

"And you can call me Diamond."

"Or... I can call you my sugar baby."

Her eyes grew wide, shocked. "I'll see you tonight." With that, he turned and walked out the store, not purchasing anything.

Royalty felt a piece of paper in her hand and found his number written on it. He was smooth with it, she never even realised it.

'Damn... am I... getting a sugar daddy?' She asked herself confused as she made her way to pay for her items. 'Where the fuck was you in college?!' She screamed in her head.

She walked out the store, now excited about what tonight was going to hold for her. She was about to get paid.

* * *

"Ok. How do I look?" Jazmine did a 360 turn in front of her friends.

"Sexy."

"Hot."

"Fine as hell."

Were the answers she got.

Jazmine wore a brown, thin strapped dress that had a deep V-line paired with white, lace up heels. She spent the last few hours maintaining her curls the best she could in order to keep it all out natural. She also still wore the necklace Huey had given her that set in the perfect space on her chest. However, for the first time in a very long term, she didn't think about him.

"I feel like you always got these fancy ass dates while I'm going to be out here shaking my ass to get money." Royalty joked.

"Word sis. This hoe trifling." Cindy agreed.

"Ay Cin, don't get too jelous. That might be us soon with them twins." Ming nudged her.

"What twins?" Jazmine questioned.

"Well you know how we told you what went down with our parents. As we were leaving these twins stopped us and asked for our numbers and we been texting for the whole day. They kinda cute or whatever."

"And you just going to leave that out?"

Cindy shrugged. "It's not that serious."

"Yet." Royalty added.

"Whatever."

They heard Jazmine's phone go off and she read the text. "Jayden's here, I'll see you guys later."

"If you gonna stay to fuck let us know bitch!" Cindy shouted to her as she made her way out.

"Alright!" Jazmine shouted back.

She made her way downstairs and saw him leaning on his car in navy-blue trousers and a black shirt that was open at the top.

"You cleaned up nice Jayden Giovanni Russo." Jazmine nodded as she looked him up and down.

"Oh you remember my middle name. And you, Jazmine Aaliyah Dubious, is looking mighty fine in that skin tight dress you have on." He complemented her. He held open the car door for her. "After you."

"Such a gentlemen." Jazmine smiled as she stepped into his car.

Jayden jogged to the driver's seat before driving away from the hotel and to the restaurant he had chosen.

It didn't take long for them to pull up to a fancy restaurant that Jazmine remembered.

"My parents always came here." She said out loud.

Hearing that made Jayden nervous. "Oh is it? Interesting." Before Jazmine could question why he was so nervous, he jumped out the car to run around and hold the door open for her.

'Why he acting so weird?' Jazmine thought but decided to say nothing and just let him lead her inside.

"Hi, we have a reservation under the name Russo." He told the waitress.

"Right this way." He led them through the large restaurant to somewhere around the back.

As they walked closer to the table that's when Jazmine's eyes laid on the table that had two seats occupied and two seats empty.

"You have to be fucking kidding me." She cursed, not carrying if people were looking at her strange.

"Come on Jazmine." Jayden went to reach for her arm but she pulled away.

"Jayden did you set this up?" He had the same nervous facial expression. "I can't fucking believe you."

Jayden reached out for Jazmine again but this time she didn't pull away which he was grateful for. "Come on JD. We're already here, we might as well stay and enjoy our meal. As soon as we leave, we can go back to my place."

'Yeah you wish.' She rolled her eyes.

"Fine but I will run the bill up. Fucking around with me." Jazmine stomped towards the table leaving Jayden shocked. Chicago and her friends have definitely influenced her attitude.

The other people stood up with wide eyes.

"Hello Jazmine."

"Mother. Father." Jazmine aggressively sat down, making the two and Jayden sit down awkwardly.

Sarah and Tom DuBois sat in front of their daughter they hadn't seen in about 5 years. They still looked the same but they couldn't say the same about Jazmine. She certainly turned into a stunning young woman.

The table was silent for a good 10 minutes. The only time they talked was when they ordered food and drinks, which Jazmine made sure she got something pricey.

The food came out and they all ate but theirs eyes were glued on Jazmine. She ate as if they were no one there. Feeling the eyes on her for too long, she looked up from her food.

"What?"

Sarah cleared her throat. "It's good to see you Jazmine."

"I guess it's good to see you too mother."

"We've missed you."

"Then how comes you never called me?" She asked them, giving them her full attention now.

"It was kind of hard for us to accept the daughter we raised was getting naked in front of men." Tom told her.

Jazmine scoffed. "You barely raised me. Most of the time you were around you argued."

"That's in the past now Jazmine. We want to build a relationship again, we've missed so much." Sarah said to her daughter.

That's when Jazmine noticed the worried look on their face as they started at her... more like her cheek.

Gripping her fork, she slowly turned her head to Jayden.

"Did you tell them?"

Jayden wanted to shrink into his chair but sat tall. "Yes."

"Jayden!"

"They needed to know Jazmine! Their only daughter nearly died because she got caught up with some gang leaders' business. They deserve to know the reason their daughter had to suddenly come back."

"No they didn't." Jazmine screwed her eyes at him.

Silence fell over the group again before Sarah broke it once more.

"That's a cute necklace Jazmine."

Jazmine smiled. "Thanks. My gang leader boyfriend gave it to me. Pretty right?"

They all looked at her shocked.

'Boyfriend?! Jazmine never said they were going out. She may be lying just to piss of her parents. Either way, that necklace has to go.' Jayden thought as he sipped his wine.

"Don't you think you should throw it away after everything he did to you?" Tom questioned his daughter.

'Yes Tom.' Jayden smiled.

Jazmine screwed her nose. "Nah I'm good."

Jayden's smile dropped. 'What a boy gotta do to get her to forget about him?'

"Jazmine. We're trying here. We want you back in our lives. We miss you. We want you to go back to college, become a doctor you always wanted to be or even a lawyer. We will even let you become a vet like how you wanted when you were 9. You can work part time at our firm so you don't have to be naked all the time. We can do some shopping for that too, I love the dress but it's a bit much." Sarah suggested.

Jazmine looked at her in disbelief before bursting out in laughter.

"What's funny?" Tom asked confused.

"You really think I need a fucking hand out?"

"Jazmine." Jayden tried to interrupt her.

"Nah Jayden you shut the fuck up and stay out of this since you can't mind your own fucking business, I have to tell you time mind your own." She turned back to her stunned parents. "I done told you I am not going back to college. Money can't buy me. I don't give a fuck that you cut me off. Cindy don't give a fuck her parents cut her off, Ming doesn't give a fuck that her parents cut her off. We don't give a fuck. Money can't buy my love. I'm not that scared little girl who would burst out crying over dumb shit. I am a grown ass woman who can make her own fucking decisions."

"Jazmine they just want the best for you." Jayden tried to tell her.

"Nah nah. Throwing money at me won't make me love them like I used to. I mean, I don't love the customers that throw money at me and they throw a lot." Jazmine smirked at how uncomfortable the table got.

"Jazmine Aaliyah DuBois. I don't know what has gotten into you but you need to stop! You need to act like a lady and get a real job and settle down. Jayden right here is perfect for you. He will be the perfect husband and father and you know that." Tom tried to set up which Jayden was actually glad to hear.

Jazmine rolled her eyes. "Listen. You all just need to stop and let me do me."

"That's the problem Jazmine." Sarah started. "We have and look at where we have ended up. You've had to run back to Woodcrest because a drug dealer in Chicago got you kidnapped and beaten by his enemy. You were always too gullible."

Jazmine was taken back and she began to tear up. "You know what. I can't. I don't need this negativity in my life. Like you just said, I was just kidnapped and beaten. I thought I was going to be fucking abused and killed only a few days ago. I've been through a lot and I don't need you both, wait, you three, talking to me like I'm a dumb bitch because I am not. I am a grown woman." Jazmine stood up. "You know, at least Huey didn't talk down at me because of what I did. He saw the grown, strong woman I am and I know he began to love me the way I began to love him." She finally confessed. She was shocked that she admitted it and out loud but it felt right to say.

With tears falling down her face, Jazmine left the frozen table and made her way outside, already pulling out her phone to call her an Uber. This was not how to imagined her night ending but she was ready to go home and cry into her pillow.

As she sat in the car, she thought back to the moment their parents found of they were strippers.

* * *

_Five years ago_

_*Ring*_

"_Hm."_

_*Ring*_

'_Just stop ringing.' Jazmine thought as she stuffed her head into the pillow._

_*Ring*_

_This time, it sounded louder._

"_Ugh!" She moaned. She flipped over and grabbed her phone. She quickly looked at the time and saw it was only 9am and her mother was calling. She answered the call half awake. "Hello?"_

"_Jazmine! What is the meaning of this?!"_

"_Daddy?" She questioned, more awake now._

"_Don't you daddy me! Jazmine what the fuck are these pictures?!" He screamed down the phone._

_Jazmine sat up. "What photos?" Her heart began to race._

"_Look at your messages!"_

_So she did._

_There, she saw 10 different pictures of her, Cindy, Ming and Royalty all working at the strip club. It was them dancing on stage and on different customers in their revelling outfits with money stuffed in different places. She couldn't believe it. Who took these pictures?_

"_Who took these pictures?" Jazmine asked in disbelief._

"_Never mind who took them! Jazmine what are you doing? You know how embarrassing it is to us, to see our daughter half naked in front of these men! We raised you better than this!" Her mother screamed._

"_Mom, I'm sorry. I was just helping out a friend."_

"_What friend? Royalty? Why don't you just let her ass go instead of letting her degrade yourself for money. My child shouldn't be doing this!"_

_Jazmine looked shocked. They loved Royalty. "Mom, dad. I know you're angry-"_

"_Furious!"_

"_But it's not her fault! You can't blame her for this."_

"_Yes we can! And we don't need a whore as a daughter dragging our name and image through the mud!"_

_Jazmine began to tear up. "Mom. You don't mean that."_

"_We mean it Jazmine. Fix this or never hear from us, we're cutting you off until then." Tom told his daughter before hanging up._

_Jazmine didn't wait and instantly ran out her room, shocked. Cindy and Ming looked as if they were about to run to her room._

"_Did your parents call too?" Ming asked. Jazmine nodded._

"_My parents, well, mother said she's going to cut me off. My dad tried to reason with her but she said no." Cindy explained._

"_My parents cussed me out in Mandarin for a good 10 minutes. Also saying they will never talk to be as long as I do what I do." Ming crossed her arms frustratingly._

"_Same here." Jazmine took a deep breath. "You know what, fuck them. We're adults now, we can work something out."_

_Royalty had stepped out of her room eventually, scared about all the ruckus._

"_I'm sorry..." She whispered tearfully._

"_Oh Roy Roy." Jazmine sighed before they all gave her a group hug. "It's not your fault."_

"_But it is! Your parents wouldn't be angry with you if you weren't such good friends."_

"_Sorry if you think imma let my home girl walk up in a strip joint on her own and do it by herself. That's now how we roll." Cindy told her._

"_I meaaannn did I really want to study architecture." Ming laughed._

"_For real thou. We sleep most the time. Just there for attendance."_

"_I'm not going to lie. I do have a lot of respect for doctors but I don't think I can do it. It's too much for me." Jazmine said nervously._

_Royalty sighed. "Same here... so what we gonna do?"_

_They all looked at each other. "I guess we're just gotta go with the flow."_

* * *

That morning changed their life forever. They were independent and on their own and they surprising adapted well. They got the freedom they were looking for and collectively agreed to drop out of college, making their parents extra mad but they did what they wanted to do.

Jazmine stared out the window, watching the nightlife of Woodcrest creeping out. The kidnapping had changed them all, she knew that. They may be acting like their normal selves but something was going to change and she didn't know what. She knew that none of them were prepared for it. No one was every going to be the same after what they experienced and witnessed. She just wished that there was someone other than her girls that she could talk to. Yes, they were going through something similar but she needed a new perspective but a therapist just sounded like a waste of time. She was going to have to find another way around it.

She sighed. She really wasted a good outfit... At least she got a free meal out of it.

* * *

At The Wild Tiger

"Damn. It's been so long since I have had your weed." Cindy coughed as she passed the blunt to Ed.

"I know you ain't had shit like this. This the good shit." He laughed.

Cindy shrugged. "I mean it's good but Chicago had that good good."

"You saying it like you fucked the drug dealer." Ed and Rummy began to laugh until they noticed she wasn't. "Damn you did?"

She sighed as she took another pull. "You could say that."

"Your ass always said drug dealers weren't shit yet you fucked one. That's cold Cynthia." Ed laughed but stopped when Cindy punched him in the arm.

"You know better than to be calling me fucking Cynthia. Stupid ass bitch."

"Whatever. I wanna get high high." Ed reached into his draw and pulled out a bag of white pills.

"Woah. You on pills now. You said those were for pussies."

"That was back in the day. These motherfuckers sell good." Rummy popped two in his mouth while Ed took three.

"You wanna try one?" Ed held a handful out in front of her.

Cindy shook her head. The most drugs her and her friends agreed on was weed but it couldn't be that bad right? Ed and Rummy have been taking drugs for years and they were still standing.

"But I got work."

"Man fuck that shit. I'll pay you for the shit you missed." Ed told her, the handful of pills still in front of her.

Cindy took a deep breath. Was she really going to do it? I mean, it really couldn't be that bad right? Everyone did this.

'But everyone is dying from it Cynthia.' The angel lectured her.

'Fuck that shit. Take that motherfucking pill like the bad bitch you are. You are that bitch aren't you?' The devil hyped her.

'Yeah! I am that bitch!' Cindy thought before grabbing a pill and swallowing straight.

Rummy laughed. "Let the night begin."

* * *

Ruby was serving drinks as normal but today was starting out very slow. She was scrolling on her phone but nothing was interesting expect from the text from Jazmine saying she was back at the hotel. She was interested to why her night ended so abruptly but would wait until after work. For now, she had to find a way to entertain herself.

"You know what would make the night go quicker." A blue haired bartender started.

"What?" Ruby turned to her confused but she also gave an answer.

"If you had something to drink." She shook a bottle of Grey Goose making Ruby look at her strange.

"You drink on the job?"

She shrugged. "Shit be slow sometimes, it's what gets the blood pumping." She poured the liquor into two shot glasses. "You game?"

Ruby didn't even think before backing the liquor, letting it burn a throat. "Another."

The blue haired girl laughed. "I knew I liked you." She said as she took her own shot before filling the glasses back up for round two which Ruby happily took. It wasn't her last shot for the night.

* * *

Diamond was fixing her make up when one of the girls came up to her.

"You got a customer. Number 5." Then walked away.

'Weird ass girl.' Diamond thought. She took a once over at her skin tight outfit and plastered a smile on her face before walked to the room she was called to.

That's when she saw him again. Mr Silver.

"I told you I will see you again." He smirked at her shocked look.

"I guess I should have listened." She laughed as she walked over to him.

She played some music and did her usual. Dance in front of him, dipping low, looking at him like she wanted to fuck him, the usual.

"I've been waiting for a text from you all day."

"Been busy old man."

Her chuckled. "Come onn. I'm not that old and I can still get down with the kids."

Diamond made her face. "Yeah, definitely not old."

Her time was up and she made her way towards the door when she felt his hands on her arm.

"Wait." She stopped but didn't turn to look at him. "I know them young boys don't treat you as good as I can treat you. You don't even have to give me that sexy body of yours, just give me some of your time and attention and I will treat you good." Mr Silver pulled a stack of money out from nowhere and placed it in her hands. She weighed it.

'He just dropped 1K in my hand.' Years of stripping allowed her to count money based on the weight and the note, they all learned how to.

She thought about it for a second. A sugar daddy would sound nice and Mr Silver wasn't bad. He wasn't her type but she always knew she would catch a rich, white man's attention who would splash money on her. This could work in her favour.

"I'll text you later." Diamond stroked his faced before strutting out the room, making sure his eyes stayed glued to her until she was completely out of sight.

'A bitch gonna be rich! Well, richer.' She did an evil laugh out loud which even scared herself. She was going to enjoy herself.

* * *

**My longest chapter yet. We love it really. New chapter for T&T will be dropping next week, I'll make sure of it.**

**Chel29: Mackenzie is just a female Riley tbvh and Huey doesn't know what he's doing.**

**malevolentedge: I always deliver**

**RabbitMelody: Hasn't he always lowkey been a hoe?**

**BoondocksFever234: Trust me, that nightmare scene creeped me out and OG was never going to die, he wouldn't let a little roughness kill him. And you're right about Huey and Anthony. Anthony maybe a year old but Huey has been through it all which makes him seem as if he is the oldest. Is Huey Freeman really Huey Freeman without him being stubborn? And the I really tried with the fight scenes to give them their own little moments and honestly enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Mackenzie is defo a female Riley and I wonder if you will love Raven even more in this chapter. AND YES. I can't believe you have been leaving us hanging on Silent Beauty. I need my Juey moments now that the secrets are out. I hope to see that soon loool.**

**Just wanted to quickly add RIP Kobe & Gianna and all those that died. It was something no one expected to hear and they will be missed.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	31. Chapter 31: Chicago & Tattoos

"It's been two months and nothing has seemed to change for Chicago. The war between these two gangs has only become bloodier and more dangerous. We spend most of our nights wondering if we are going to go to sleep to the sound of gun shots once again. We're walking out our homes wondering if at some point today we are going to have to run away from stray bullets. Parents are in fear for their children walking in the streets they could once have little trouble walking down. Now, they're wondering more than ever if they should even allow their child out the house. Simon West was the first victim to be caught up in the cross fire. He was 9 years old. He was out with some friends when bullets began to fly through the air. The bullet went straight through his heart, killing him instantly. He died on scene. The second and most recent victim was 15-year-old Vicky Lane. She was on her way home from track practice when another shoot out started. She ran but unfortunately a bullet struck her spinal cord. That was a week ago and her parents had to make the toughest decisions of their lives, to turn off the only machine that was keeping their baby girl alive. 9 and 15. Two children who had their whole life ahead of them were now gone. Parents have lost their son and daughter, grieving every single day they lay their eyes on a picture of the child they birthed. No parent wants to bury their child but here we are. Our thoughts and prays are with the families of these young victims. Back to you at the station."

* * *

"Chicago has begun to spiral. Cocaine has been released more freely onto the streets and it has become dangerous. It has seemed this gang war is bigger than we thought. Within these short months, you can already see the people using and becoming hooked. It is such a sad sight to see. People that have lived here for years are heartbroken to see this happening again and are frightened that this might be a part two to the 80s crack cocaine epidemic that plagued these very streets we grew up on. We-"

"Hey! Lady! Lemme get a few dollars!"

"Excus- excuse me?"

"A dollar! I need some dollars bitch!"

"Sir, we're in the middle of live-"

"I don't give a fuck about live motherfucker Mr cameraman. I was talking to this lady here. I need some dollars. Shiiittt broke ass bitches."

"...There you have it. One of the victims that have evidently become addicted to the drugs. We pray that this ends soon. Please, stay safe Chicago."

* * *

Two months had past... and shit was crazy.

Riley was now 24 and had spent his birthday in the middle of a shootout. It seemed as if he had birthday luck and barely got a scratch on him which then lead him to celebrate at the strip club and end his night with about three girls in his arms. Caesar and Hiro had dived deep into their work because with the Russian's having their drugs in the streets, people were looking for something to get them higher and it was already taking a negative effect already.

Addictions, violence, overdoses, murder. Everything Huey didn't want to see happen.

Huey was a mess himself. He was angrier than normal. His parents would try every now and then to reel him back in but to no use, he was furious and was on a rampage. He lost control and could feel himself losing control over himself. The other gang members noticed this and would sometimes be afraid to be around him as they didn't want to set him off.

He heard about the two children that was killed because of this war and his heart broke piece by piece. Hearing their parents cry was not something he wanted to happen but these were the consequences of this war. He hated it. He wanted it all to end and the only way he knew how to was to chop off the head of the snake, by doing so, the rest will eventually stop and die too.

What made Huey feel worse about the death of Vicky and Simon was because he knew of them. Simon was quiet but his parents were nice people and helped give back to the community which he would help with. Anthony knew Vicky. She was on the track team at his school and he would help coach her every now and then.

Huey has been avoiding him ever since.

He wanted to put this matter to rest but it just kept spiralling. He wasn't a very religious person but he prayed to God that He could help in some shape or form. It sounded selfish of him to ask someone he didn't practically believe in or followed but at this point, it was who everyone was looking to for help. He might as well add to them prayers.

Huey took a deep breath and knocked on the door. The door swung open and he was met by a bright smile.

"Sup nigga. Long-time no seen." She said as she stepped to the side to let him in.

"Hello to you too Raven." He greeted as he walked into her house.

In the same two months, the house went from looking like a young, single, childless woman to a young, single mother (by choice). He could see the toys and bottles in the living room as well as the bouncer where the four-month-old Cairo, sat sucking on his fist. As Huey walked in, baby Cairo's eyes became locked onto this new person.

"Has it really been that long since I have come to your house?" Huey wondered as he looked around the room.

Raven laughed. "It really has. Looks like I ain't lonely anymore."

"You were never lonely." He rolled his eyes. "I did live upstairs."

"Ok but who really has time to be coming all the way upstairs when I can just send you a text." Raven sat down in her seat next to her son.

"Lazy."

"Busy."

"Doing?"

"You know how hard it is to take care of a human that depends on you ever second of the day?"

"Yeah... I do."

"We both know that's different Huey."

He sighed. "I guess so."

They sat in silence for a few seconds, both in thought. These couple of months had really thrown itself at them and they just had to roll with the punches. They were not going to give up but it still didn't mean it wasn't challenging.

Raven decided to lighten the mood a little and smiled down at Cairo. He looked up at her. "Heeyy Cairo. You finished eating them hands of yours. Huh? You just ate so I know you ain't hungry you greedy baby." Cairo looked up at his mother and smiled before throwing his hands up and down and kicking his legs, making the bouncer move.

Huey watched in admiration. For someone who had no preparation for a baby, she seemed to be doing just fine.

Raven took a quick look at Huey and thought of an idea. She began to take Cairo out of the bouncer and walk towards Huey.

Huey raised an eyebrow. "Raven-?"

"This is your uncle Huey. You can call him if you are in any trouble and he can sort it out ok? Everyone knows only a man can raise a man so he can be that man for you." Raven smiled before placing Cairo into Huey arms, much to his protest. She sat on the seat closer to Huey and smiled. "Enjoy."

Huey shook his head but changed his grip on Cairo. Cairo. It was still strange to say. He took a deep breath. "I can't believe she is making us do this."

Raven rolled her eyes. "You're acting like you weren't the first person he saw out of all of us."

"I know but this is different. Much different..."

Huey looked at Cairo intensely, looking at all his features. The one that still stood out was his eyes. It seemed as if it was just going to become brighter green eyes. He knew if this continued, people would say his eyes were an intense green when he got older. Even in his tough guy ways, Huey couldn't help but fall into those adorable baby eyes that were looking back at him in just as much wonder, well, more like looking at the large ball of hair on the man's head.

Cairo reached out to grab a hold of it but Huey slightly pulled him back.

"None of that Cairo."

"It's weird saying his name again isn't it." Raven softly smiled.

Huey took his eyes off of the baby for a second. "Yes... why would you...?"

Raven knew what he wanted to say so answered without him needing to finish. "Ever since that day, I would think about naming my son Cairo after my best friend who didn't get the chance to live the life he wanted. I want to protect him in a way I couldn't back then and I have a feeling the two will be similar. His middle name is Andre in memory of my cousin Andrea. She would have loved him. The official name of this baby boy is Cairo Andre Miller. Its already on his birth certificate. "

Huey didn't say anything. In terms of looks, they looked nothing alike but maybe when he gets older the personality might unexpectedly be similar.

Raven watched the interaction between Cairo and Huey. Every time she saw him with children, it really shocked her at how good he was. Whenever he was around his baby cousins, he always seemed calm and at peace, which made her wonder.

"So when are you going to have some babies?"

Huey looked at her shocked. He didn't expect that question. "Not any time soon, if ever." He stood and handed Cairo back to his mother.

"But you would like to?" She pushed.

"Maybe. Why, you offering?" He smirked.

She smirked back. "If you asked me that 10 years ago then yes but now, no way Jose. Anyway, I know you want kids."

Huey sighed and sank into the chair. He scratched his head. "I mean, I gotta carry on my legacy somehow, even if they don't want to be involved, I would be better knowing that I did more than be a gang leader."

Raven nodded. She understood what he meant. They all wanted to be known more than for being on the streets and having children would be one of the ways they would feel at peace with themselves. Not the best circumstance but it was still something.

"I know what your baby mother would look like." She smiled which he just rolled his eyes.

"Raven-"

"Average height! Very pretty. Lightish, brownish skin, basically a redbone. I know you love your sisters but it's just going to end up this way. Slim thick. She got a big ass afro, basically as big as yours which is golden. And big, green, emerald eyes."

Huey took a deep breath. He knew exactly who she was talking about.

"Jazmine."

"Ding ding ding ding! We have a winner!" She shouted but had to stop once she realised she startled Cairo. "I'm sorry Cairo."

"You do realise that Jazmine and I are over."

"I don't. We all know you are not over."

"She's moved away and I'm pretty sure moved on."

Raven shook her head. "We both know that ain't true. You love each other and love always finds a way to come back together. That's how the world works."

"In movies."

"Well our life is a movie Ghost. Our lives are Oscar worthy, even with the discrimination the academy has." She smirked.

"You're not serious."

"Dead ass." Huey fidgeted. "It's been two months Huey and I can see you're stressing. You're tired and I know the boys are tired. Everyone is. The whole damn Chicago is. We just need this war to end. I could even jump back in since I'm all healed up now."

Huey shook his head. "I don't want you getting hurt again, you have to think for Cairo now too. Maybe when I know for certain this is all coming to a close, I'll call you to come fuck up your best friend."

Raven screwed her face. "I hate you."

Huey smirked. "No you don't."

"Whatever." She rolled her eyes but got serious again. "But seriously. You need to de-stress at some point or it won't be good for anyone, especially for you. I think you should even reach out to Jazmine, see how she is, I know she misses you just as much as you miss her. Maybe once this mess dies down, you can finally be together, which I will stay out of this time." She let out a short laugh. She was really crazy a few months ago. "Just, take what I'm saying into consideration Huey."

"I will." As he nodded, his phone rang and he saw it was his older cousin, which was strange. "Hello." He answered.

"Hey Huey. I need you to do me a favour." Anthony asked. "I know we haven't really talked since what happened to Vicky but just know I'm not mad at you. I just really need you to do me this one thing."

"Who I gotta kill?" Raven looked at the smirking Huey weirdly. Huey only said that because he knew it was going to get on his cousin's nerves.

"Damn nigga not everything is violence. Well, in this case it kinda is." Anthony sighed on the other side of the phone. "I'm stuck at work and I need you to pick up Tay and Coco."

Huey was confused he never went to their school. "What why?"

"Your two baby cousins decided to get into a fight so I need someone to come get them. Wifey is sick with the baby so I don't want to stress her out and Dante doing some work too. Plus, you're the closest."

Huey sighed, not seeing his day to be planned out like this but he knew he had to do this little favour. His cousin would do anything for him so he would do anything for him.

"Alright, I will leave now."

"Thanks cuz."

"Later."

They hung up and Huey stood to leave.

"What's wrong?" Raven asked as she stood up too.

"Little Coco and Tay decided to get in a fight so Tony needs me to go get them." Huey explained.

"Damn you think that's a good idea?"

Huey shook his head. "But that's family."

She nodded. "I get you, I get you. Well, I'll see you when I see you. Keep me updated with the gang."

"I will." Huey pulled her into a side hug and she wrapped one are around him before they pulled away.

She lifted one of Cairo's hand and made him wave. "Say bye to uncle Huey! Bye bye uncle Huey!"

The afro man shook his head before making his way to pick up to the two girls. He didn't know what to expect.

* * *

"Ok, it's time for lunch children!"

The classroom of children hurriedly ran out their classes to enjoy their lunch time.

"They are always so quick to run out." Jayden shook his head as he collected his own things for his break.

He had been in Chicago for just less than two months and he was really enjoying himself here. They children were vibrate and full of life and he wanted to do his best to bring it out of them as early as possible. If not, then they would struggle as they got older.

He worked in a school that was aged 3 to 10 which was different but he guessed was perfect for parents. The school was quite close in terms of staff and children which he enjoyed, despite the few flirting teachers here and there. He only had one woman on his mind still, Jazmine.

It sounded obsessive but he couldn't get enough of her. They didn't talk for a few days after the terrible dinner with her parents but she came through and saw him before he left for Chicago (which consisted of none stop orgasms). They now kept in touch with each other every other day to see how their lives were going. He could tell sometimes that she was a bit depressed but bubbly Jazmine would not let it show. Even the way she talked about the girls, he knew something had changed but Jazmine was keeping her mouth shut about the issue.

He walked into the staff room to some of the gossiping teachers.

"Hey Mr Russo, how are you?" One of the teachers, Miss Spring, asked.

Jayden gave her a kind smile. "Good, how are you Miss Spring?"

"I could be better. I was telling these folks about my crazy morning."

"What can be so crazy about pre-schoolers?" Jayden questioned as he sat down with the group of teachers.

"If you call having to separate two feisty Freeman's off two other students not crazy, then I don't know what is." She said which made the room laugh.

'Freeman?' He thought.

"Wait did you say Freeman?" He questioned.

She stopped taking a sip of her coffee. "Oh yeah you're new around here, well I guess you heard about the Freemans. Tay Freeman is a daughter of a respected high school coach in a lovely marriage to his beautiful wife and their other baby daughter whereas Miss Coco Freeman is a product of a loveless relationship whose mother bounced the first chance she could get, leaving her with her drug dealer, gang member daddy, Dante Freeman. You can see how different them girls are raised, Coco was not letting go of the poor girl at all."

"So it isn't Huey Freeman that has a child?" Jayden pushed for some reason.

Miss Spring laughed. "Heavens no! That boy is as cold as ice. Only a handful of girls have managed to capture his attention, the longest being his right-hand Raven. They dated back in high school. Even with me being 5 years older than them, everyone knew about them. Their parents basically breaded gang leaders."

"Damn... that's intense." Jayden was getting info he didn't need but was kinda glad.

"I know right." Miss Spring laughed. "But last I heard... he was dating this light skin girl but she ran away from him. It's all crazy. Now we got this war happening and they're killing our babies. It's a scary world out here." Miss Spring finally ended her gossip about the Freeman's and moved onto another topic.

Jayden was kind of surprised that their business was so open but then again, he knew their whole family grew up and practically ran Chicago so people would know things here and there. He just didn't expect to hear so much. He kind of hoped that Huey had a secret child so he could run and tell Jazmine and she would finally see that he was no good for her. The only reason he knew she was still thinking about him was because of the stupid necklace that did not seem to leave her neck.

During their last sexual interaction, he 'accidentally' broke the chain but within 4 hours, she went to fix it and it was back around her neck in no time. He should have mixed it with his stuff and kept it away from her. His plan did not work.

Deciding he needed to release himself in the bathroom, he got up and left the staff room.

He walked down the empty halls to the toilet but paused once he saw a large piece of hair turn the corner.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Jayden asked aggressively out loud. "You shouldn't even be allowed 100 feet to this place."

"I should ask you the same thing."

Jayden and the person walked up to each other, squaring off. "I work here Huey Freeman. What's your excuse?"

"My nieces are here Jayden whatever the fuck your last name is."

"You mean your cousins, Coco and Tay." Jayden crossed his arms.

Huey screwed his eyebrows together. "You their teacher?"

Jayden shook his head. "No. Just heard about their little fight."

Huey smirked. "From what I'm hearing, they whooped somebody's ass. Just like how we taught them."

It was Jayden's turn to screw his eyebrows together. "They're like what, 4? That isn't being a very good role model."

The smirk dropped from Huey's face and Jayden thought he had one up on him. "You lucky we on school grounds, I would have dragged you light skin ass across the fucking floor. Remember who you are nigga."

"See, that's the thing, you can't. If you do, you will get arrested."

Huey smirked again. "With me, a trip to the police station is just a trip to see some friends, try me."

Jayden, not knowing how to responded as he realised that Huey was more powerful than he thought, decided to hit him where it hurt.

"You would still be dragged away. I wonder how Jazmine would feel that her old fling beat up her ex-boyfriend slash recently ex-lover on school properly."

Huey paused. 'Jazmine?'

He knew she went back to her hometown but did she really hook up with her ex?

"I know what you're thinking, yes she did come back to me while we were in Woodcrest. We spent many, many, maaannnnyyy, moments together ever since she got back. Too bad I had to leave so soon. We were just warming up." Jayden smiled. "Sooner or lately, she will forget all about you. All you did was cause her harm and pain and she doesn't need that. She needs me. That stupid necklace doesn't mean shit. She will come running into my arms while you watch us live happily ever after."

Huey shook his head, wondering why he was still standing here and turned to walk away. "You're fucking crazy. I don't-"

"Oh!" Jayden gasped dramatically as his phone went off with a notification, making Huey pause in his step. "Would you look at that, just in time. 'Hey Jayden, sorry I replied so late, just woke up. How has your day been? I hope the children are not giving you too much headache. Xoxo Jazzy.' See for yourself Freeman." Jayden turned the phone towards Huey and he looked.

He saw some of the old text. What made it confirm that it was Jazmine was a recent picture of her fresh face with the caption 'so glad I no longer have to rely on make up every time I walk out the door so people won't stare at me lmao'.

That hurt.

Jayden had the biggest smirk on his face as he put his phone away. He could see Huey began to breath harder and faster.

"Now if you excuse me, I gotta piss. I will tell Jazmine you said hi... actually, I won't. She doesn't need someone toxic like you." This time, Jayden turned to walk away but was stopped by Huey's voice.

"Just remember what necklace is still around her neck."

Jayden paused and wanted to turn but didn't so he continued walking, still trying to look like he won. "Trust me, that will be gone very, very soon."

With that, he finally walked into the staff restroom to do the business he left to do, leaving Huey behind.

Huey continues his way to the principles office. Out of all places he has to run into the prick somewhere he couldn't jump him. He got away talking shit but not the next time, oh no, Huey was going to punch (and kick) him down a size or 10.

It didn't take long for him to find the office and he was glad because he no longer wanted to be in the school. He walked in and went to the desk.

He cleared his throat, catching the young woman's attention. "Um I'm here to get Tay and Coco Freeman."

"If you just go straight through there, they should be in there." The woman directed him towards the principles door.

Huey slightly nodded before going over to the door and lightly knocking.

"Come in!" He heard from the other side so he did. "Hello Mr Freeman, my name is Principle Wick. Mr Anthony informed me you will be collecting the two today on behalf of their parents."

"That's right." Huey replied. He saw Tay and Coco sitting silently on the side. Tay looked upset whereas Coco looked angry still. "So can I take them now or..."

"Why don't you take a seat Mr Freeman." She told him so he reluctantly followed what she said. "You see, I understand the line of... work you do and I feel as if it is having a negative effect on the children."

Huey looked at her as if she was crazy. "They're not my daughters. I barely see them and when I do, my business is never around them. This isn't a conversation for you to be having with me about their behaviour so I don't need to hear this. I'm just doing a favour by picking them up." He stood up and turned to the two girls. "Let's go."

Coco and Tay jumped up.

"Can you carry me pleeaasssee?" Coco pouted as she held her arms open.

Huey turned to Tay. "I guess you wanna be picked up too."

Tay slightly nodded.

Huey just wanted to get out of the room so he quickly scooped the girls in his arms, making them giggle and made their way out of the school. The principle watched with disappointment on her face. He was the last person she expected to be on school grounds since he didn't seem like the one to care about others. She prayed them girls do not become influenced by him.

As they began to drive away, Huey had one question his mind.

"Why did you get in a fight?"

The two girls shared a look.

"Well one of you are going to have to tell me since I came to get you. So, what happened?"

Still silence.

"You hungry?"

They nodded.

"Ok, I will get you whatever unhealthy food you want if you tell me what happened." Huey rolled his eyes as he thought of their tiny bodies consuming the high amounts of oil and sugar. He had no intention of feeding them at first but decided that he might as well so Anthony's wife, Tiana, didn't need to worry about two more children and them being hungry while her and the baby were sick.

Coco leaned forward with her pinkie out. "Pinkie promise?"

Huey smirked before using the hand not on the steering wheel to wrap his larger pinkie around her tiny one.

"Ok. A boy snatched the skipping rope from me and daddy says its not nice to snatch so I asked if I can have it back but he said no so so so I pulled it from him and his sister came and pushed me so Tay pushed her then we started fighting." Coco breathed out.

Huey drove in silence for a few seconds. Coco was speaking very fast he was surprised he managed to catch what she said.

"Is that true Tay?"

She nodded. "Yeah. No one hurt Freeman. I 'member."

Huey nodded. "Yes because family stick together."

"The girl was not nice to my cousin so I had to protect her like you all taught us."

Huey couldn't help but to smirk as he looked at them through the mirror. Their family were big on protecting and defending each other and even others in need, it was just how they were raised and they had already started to pass it down to the new generation. It made him wonder if one day, if he had children, if they would be like Tay and Coco when it came to protecting each other.

'Of course they will. It will be the only way. Same with Caesar and Hiro's children, they are all family.' Huey thought.

"So, what do you want to eat?"

The girls decided what they wanted to eat and Huey drove there. It seemed wrong to treat them after they got in a fight but he wasn't their parents, he couldn't shout at them even if what they did didn't sound wrong. That was a conversation to have with Anthony, Tiana and Dante, not him. If his input was needed then he would happily help but for now, he was a chauffeur.

* * *

Elsewhere

Natasha sat in her room in complete silence. These past few months had been hard for her, she lost her identical twin sister. They have been by each other's side from the moment they were formed in the womb and it had been killing her every day to not be able to see or hear her sister again. It was terrible but she had to continue what she was doing and that was proving to be harder than she thought. Her mind was barely there most of the times which is why she has been on the side-lines most of the time recently.

What hurt her even more was that she couldn't even give Natalia a proper funeral or burial. They had no body and they didn't know where the Panthers dumped it.

Some people tried to reassure her that her sister was still alive but she knew better than to hold onto false hope. Plus, they sent them body parts of the two other guys they took which just helped proved her point.

Her other half was gone, she could feel it and it was all because of her.

She was the one that went after Ghost and Reezy's grandfather, this was pay back. They were looking for her but instead took her sister as an honest mistake. At times like this, she wished they had found her and not her sister. Natasha was always the one that got in trouble and Natalia was always there to clean up the mess.

One day, a young Natasha decided to scam a man who was flirting with her all night so she drugged him, had him take her back to his motel room, before robbing him blind. As she waited for her sister to pick her up, who wasn't too happy about what she did, the man began to wake up and saw her counting his money. They fought just as Natalia got there who jumped in and helped her sister which ended up with them killing the man by accident. Vladimir was next door when he heard all the commotion in the man who worked for him room, to see two females and his dead body. He was shocked but intrigued. From there, it was history.

Natasha was cut out of her flashback by the door swinging open.

"What the fuck are you doing sitting in here when you should be out doing your job?!" Vladimir screamed at her.

She shot up from her bed. "I'm sor-"

He raised his hand and struck her across the face so hard that she stumbled a little. She had no time to react as he reached forward and grabbed a fist full of her hair to make her look him directly into his cold eyes.

"Sorry doesn't mean shit around here, you know that." He looked at her red cheek and smirked, knowing a bruise was going to form. He was very heavy handed. "You still moaning over your dumb ass sister of yours. She was always the weaker one, you know that, that's why I chose you to be right next to me. Your sister was too much of a bitch to keep up with us. It was her fault her ass got caught, she should have known better." He tightened his grip on Natasha's hair, making her squint in pain. She was going to hold onto his hand to try and loosen his grip but she knew that would just make matters worse. "Get your shit together, we have things to do. Next time I catch you slacking, you will end up like you sister, dead. Understood?"

She took a deep breath. "Yes sir."

"Good..." He took his other hand and wrapped it around her neck, giving it a slight squeeze before pull her closer and planting a kiss on her lips. When he felt her not kiss back, he tightened both of his holds, making her react and kiss him back. He finally pulled away and let her go, smiling down at her. "Just to let you know, you were better at sex than your sister. You have always been my number one out of the two." He winked at her before walking out the room but not before one more comment. "I better see you outside that room in 10 seconds!"

Natasha took a deep breath, she guessed she had enough time to grieve. She had work to do. Her sister would just have to wait.

* * *

Riley was sitting at home smoking a blunt to relax himself before going to sort out some things. He couldn't lie, these past few weeks was putting stress on a nigga so the best way to release that stress was with their premium weed.

Huey had told them that they had to cut down on using their own supply so they could have more to sell but Riley struggled. Their stuff was too good to pass on especially during times like this.

Just as he felt himself entering his high state, his intercom rang.

"Damn who the fuck is this?" He cursed as he put the blunt in the astray and went to answer the door. As he looked at the camera, he saw one of the girls he spent his birthday nights with. Smirking, he let her up. "They always come back."

When she finally walked in, Riley saw she wasn't here for no spontaneous appointment.

"Watchu want?" Riley asked as he went back to his blunt. She just stood with her arms crossed looking pissed. "Spit it out hoe, I got shit to do."

Her nostrils started to flare. "Nigga I'm pregnant and you the fucking daddy!"

As soon as he heard the p word, he began to choke on the smoke. His eyed started watering and his throat began to burn.

"What- you—talkin – bout?!"

"You heard me. You got my knocked up on your birthday and I am not getting rid of this baby!" She screamed at him.

"Nah nah. Your ass a hoe. There is at least 5 other niggas that's been through you. Why don't you go and bug their ass?" Riley went over to his fridge to take out a bottle of water, hoping to soothe his now sore throat.

"I ain't no hoe! I know you my baby daddy. Your bitch ass gonna be stuck with me for 18 years nigga."

"You mean paying child support for 18 years?"

"Same thing!"

Riley shook his head. "See my sperm knows not to get no hoe pregnant for dumb shit like that Nay."

"Nigga my name is Nike not Nay! That's the other bitch you was fucking." She screamed at him.

Riley winced. "Same thing."

"No it ain't." She placed a hand over her stomach. "You hear how your daddy is disrespecting me already."

"That ain't my baby!" Riley glared at her. "I wanna DNA test asap. Call Maury if you have to, I don't give a fuck. I just need it down on paper evidence to prove that ain't mine hoe."

Her face began to turn red. "Is this how you talk to all girls?"

Riley shrugged. "Only to the ones that deserve it."

She pointed at him and smirked. "You wanna play dirty I see. Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, all that is gonna hear what a dead beat you're already being."

Riley screwed his eyebrows together. "You not see there's a fucking war happening outside this door. The moment they see your stupid self chatting shit online about me, they're going to come and get you. They don't give a fuck that you're a woman or carrying a baby. They want Freeman blood, you know, if it is a Freeman in there." Hearing that made her brown face turn pale. "Exactly. So before you think its so great to be the baby mama to a Freeman, think twice but before I claim you as my baby mama, I want a DNA test to prove that's my baby. If that is my child, then I will help you and be there. If not... then I'm out, got it?"

She nodded. "I'm only 5 weeks. I'll do it when I reach 10."

"Fair enough..." He walked back over to his couch to continue smoking his blunt. As he started to light it, he looked at Nike still standing there. "You can leave now..."

Nike rolled her eyes but made her way towards the door. "Whatever." She slammed the door behind her and Riley was left in his thoughts.

'Damn... could the baby really be mine? I mean it could but I don't believe its mine. It can't be. I fuck around a lot so I'm always careful with them STD's and babies shit. Fuck. Mom and dad are going to kill me. Mostly mom.' Riley thought as he took a long pull. 'I know when I fuck while waved I still know what I'm doing. Did I fuck up this one time? Damn I gotta see if the other two girls claim to have my baby. Shit, I don't even got their number. Reezy, you are slacking... What would Royalty say? Wait, why am I still thinking about her? This girl just won't leave my head but I kinda wish if I did have a baby mama it would be her. Nigga stop being a little bitch! Shit, being all sad for one female.'

Riley sighed and just continued to smoke, now not in the mood. Mackenzie and Christian did not want their sons to go through the whole baby mama drama but here we are.

Baby mama drama.

* * *

"I can't wait for Raven to come and do this."

"It's gonna be a min since she got baby Cairo now. Besides, didn't you love strip clubs Caesar?"

"I mean I did, still do, but it's just not the same since Cindy left you know. I mean I get it's been two months since they left but you don't meet a girl like her every day. I know you feel the same about Ming."

Hiro sighed as he stepped into the Blue Moon first to see some of the girls practicing on stage. "You have no idea man. I get exactly what you mean. Let's find Cotton so we can leave and do other shit."

Caesar nodded and the two walked over to the stage. "Hey ladies, have you seen Cotton?"

Bunny, the same annoying girl from the beginning strolled over to Caesar and Hiro and put on a sexy smile. "It's been so long since you've been here. I actually missed you all. I don't understand why you've been ghosting us all ever since them dumb Gems left and why would you need Cotton when I'm right here at your service?"

Hiro looked at her with disgust. "We are not here for that and we wouldn't want anything from you anyway."

"She's in the back." Star said from the stage as she rolled her eyes at the desperate stripper.

"Thanks." Caesar nodded in her direction before walking to the back, not giving Bunny a second glance.

The girls on stage shook their head while Bunny crossed her arms in frustration. "What you hoes looking at?"

Charm rolled her eyes while her twin sister Star just laughed. "You're so desperate its sad. They don't want you, they want the Gems so stop trying to fall on their dick like I heard you did with the other manager."

Bunny gasped making the girls laugh even more. That little white girl sure knows how to get on people's nerves.

"Cotton!" Caesar called out as he walked into the dressing room.

The brown skin girl jogged up to them so they didn't have to walk far in. "Hey! Glad you came." She looked behind her. "Let's go to the office." She lightly but quickly pushed the two out the dressing room, making them share a confused look with each other.

They got inside the mostly empty office since Raven hadn't gotten all the things she needed yet. She met some of the girls already but for now, Cotton was stepping in as manager.

"What's up?" Caesar asked as he sat on the desk.

Cotton took a deep breath. "I'm worried about Chyna."

"Why?" Hiro asked.

"She started acting a bit weird all of a sudden. Like she was out of it, sloppy sometimes. When I asked her about it the first time, she didn't say anything but I saw the needle marks on her arms. Then when I went to her house, I found her passed out with a needle sticking out her arm and cocaine lines on the table. I thought she was dead but she woke up as if it was nothing. I cleared her whole house and told her to get off the shit and she agreed she was beginning to have a problem. I believed her until she took off her shoes. I saw needle marks between her toes. She's still using." Cotton began to tear up as she recalled the story.

"Fuck... Ghost is not going to be too happy about this. He does not want this in his business let alone the streets. She's taking the enemy's stuff." Caesar crossed his arms.

Hiro nodded. "Not only that, by the sounds of it, she's already heavy into it. For her to already know to use her feet as another location to take the drugs is alarming." He turned to Cotton who was whipping her tears. "Still keep an eye out for her and get anyone else close to her to do so too but don't make it obvious."

"Ok... thank you for taking this seriously. Louis wouldn't give two shits about his girls if he was still here. Shit, there's been girls in the past that have turned to drugs and he didn't even batter an eyelid."

"You don't have to worry about that. We're business partners, employees need to be treated with respect and cared for. We know you don't want to be doing this for the rest of your lives so we might as well make the experiences as comfortable as possible." Caesar told her.

Cotton smiled at them, feeling warm at the thought that they were finally being heard. They were more than just strippers and they saw that. "Thank you guys. Seriously... I got a question though."

"Shoot."

"Have you heard from the Gems? They just up and left without saying anything and we're all kinda worried."

"Oh..." Hiro and Caesar shared a look. "They had a family emergency but we don't know when or if they will be back."

Cotton nodded in understand. "Alright. I will reach out to them anyway. Thank you again. Seriously."

"Any time."

Cotton then walked out the office, leaving the two gang members behind.

"This shit is getting out of control Hiro."

"I know man... fuck the Russian's are ruining this city. This is the last thing any of us needed. People are already struggling with addictions and all of them sorts and with a new, fresh product on the street, it will just feed that addiction. Them motherfuckers need to be stopped asap."

"I hear that. We still need to get our own shit out there."

Hiro thought for a few seconds. "Why don't we do what we do at Empire? Get the workers who are willing to sell some weed on the side?"

Caesar thought about it for a few seconds and began to nod. "That's a good idea. Great ganja and a lap dance is all anyone can ask for. Let's go talk to them."

Caesar and Hiro walked out the office and called all the girls to the centre stage.

"What's up?" Melody asked as she sat down next to Daisy.

"We know that you know what has been going on lately. Trust me, we don't like it as much as you do." Caesar started.

"Yeah. I'm out here scared for my nephew. He shared a class with that poor little boy who was killed." Rose said.

"Yeah that hurt us all and trust us when we say the ones responsible will be brought down very very soon. Which is why we need your help." Hiro continued from Caesar. "We were thinking about having the one who are willing, to sell some of our stuff to customers. We don't need anyone using the Russian's stuff so I hope none of you are using. It's not wise." Hiro looked over at Chyna but didn't make it obvious that he was talking about her. She was putting on a poker face but he knew she was cracking underneath.

"Now as my boy said before, you don't have to do it if you don't want to. You can choose if you want to do it, if you don't, that's no problem. We just need ways to flush out the amount of people using coke as many ways possible."

The girls all talked between themselves for about a minute as the men waited, even the security was discussing too. They stopped talking and faced Caesar and Hiro.

"So, what we gotta do?" Carmen smirked.

Hiro and Caesar smirked back, making everyone else smile. "Let's get started."

* * *

A week later

"Cindy are you high again?"

"No."

"Don't lie to me Cynthia."

"I'm not lying to you Jazmine."

Jazmine put her hands on her hips and sighed in frustration. "Your eyes are blood shot red Cindy!"

"Fine! I'm high! Shit. You're acting like you don't smoke." Cindy rolled her eyes as she brushed her hair.

"I don't smoke as much as you have been doing. That's not how we roll."

"Times have changed Jazzy."

Jazmine rubbed her forehead and sighed. "I know but come on now. You're running away from your problems by being high all the time."

"We don't judge in this hotel rooooomm." Cindy smirked. "And you're running too. You're acting as if everything is perfect with your parents by working with them but we all know you're more miserable than any of us."

"...You know what. Give me the blunt." Jazmine snatched the roll up from Cindy's bedside table, lit it and flopped on her back on Cindy's bed. Cindy laughed and joined her.

"See, you're smoki-"

"Shut up" Jazmine cut her off as she took another pull.

"Damn bitch. It's puff puff pass." Cindy snatched the blunt from Jazmine's fingers and took her own pulls. "But seriously, we're all going through it but none of us is ready to address it. Ming and Royalty have changed too. I'm always high, Ming is drinking, you're acting as if everything is perfect and I'm pretty sure Royalty done got herself a sugar daddy because I know she will not spend all her money on dumb shit."

Jazmine looked up at the ceiling and thought about what Cindy had said. It was true. They all changed without them realising it at first. They had distance themselves from each other but acted as if everything was normal when it really wasn't. They didn't know why they were lying to themselves that everything was fine but they needed to stop it now.

"Yeah... call Ming and Royalty. We need to vent to each other. I miss talking to my girls. Again."

Cindy nodded and called the two who went out shopping. About 20 minutes later, they all sat on Cindy's bed just looking at each other.

All their injuries had healed. Cindy and Jazmine didn't have to rely on heavy makeup anymore, Ming didn't need to wear as much high neck tops which she was happy about since she started to get frustrated about it and Royalty didn't have to clean her wounds everyday as it had now formed into scars. The one on her stomach was less visible than the one on her shoulder but she was glad the pain was gone. They almost looked like their old self.

"So what should be addressed first?" Cindy asked.

"Well since you volunteered." Ming started making the girls laugh. "You're high all the time. Tell us about it."

Cindy sighed. "I was at the club with Ed and Rummy and they were getting high so I joined them but then they pulled out some pills." She saw their eyes go wide in shock. "I know I know. I only did it like 3 other times but I'm strictly weed now. I didn't like the high as much as I thought I would and I'm glad. Too many people are dying from it. I don't want to be one."

"At least you had that self-control." Jazmine praised.

"Yeah, some people get hooked the first time and can't get off it first time. We're proud of you." Royalty smiled reassuringly.

"Nah. I don't deserve that."

"But you do. You knew it didn't feel right and you stopped. That's good."

"I guess... but yeah. Being high just makes me forget things for a moment you know. No worries in the world. No crazy kidnap happened, no man I saw myself falling in love with, forced to be away from me, no mother who hated the sight of me. None of that. It was just me in my own bubble for a few minutes maybe even hours depending how high I could get. It sounds unhealthy because it is but I couldn't help it. I didn't want to bother any of you because I knew you were going through it in your own way. It seemed as if we just all wanted to be in our own bubble for a while."

They all nodded.

Ming sighed. "I get exactly what you mean. Instead of getting high I was getting drunk. The girl at the bar gave me a shot one night and from there I couldn't help myself. I started to drink every time I was behind that bar. It was easy access, I didn't care. I'm sure you noticed some nights I was coming home tipsy but I forced myself to act normal. I wanted to forget everything too for just a few moments. I don't see that man laughing at seeing us in pain, I don't see Hiro's pained face when he told me goodbye, I don't see my parents look at me as if I was dog shit. None of that. I just saw me at peace with myself." Ming turned to Cindy. "And we're fucking them twins thinking it can replace Hiro and Caesar but they're not the same and I hate that I still think about them. Like what the fuck is this bullshit!"

"Trust me girl, I feel you." Jazmine nodded. "Huey treated me in a way that it just stuck with me. He didn't care about what I did, he didn't want to change me. I loved Jayden. Past tense. Back in high school which is why sleeping with him was a big mistake because I gave him false hope but I just needed some type of comfort and he was the best option but he was too much. I'm kinda glad he moved away because I knew he was about ready to propose any second." Jazmine rolled her eyes as the girls laughed in agreement. He was really ready too. "But yeah. After that terrible dinner I decided to reach out to my parents and work things out with my consent this time. I really am trying but it's so hard feeling the pressure and judgement they are shooting at me. It's not healthy but I just keep telling myself, 'you're 25, you need to get your shit together,' and it scares me. I would think maybe I should just take Jayden seriously but I just can't bring myself to do so. I would be in an unhappy relationship even if the person is such a great partner, he's just not great for me. I just hope he finds a girl that loves him even more than I did... What about you Royalty?"

"Nothing is wrong with me." She crossed her arms over her chest in defiance but the girls gave her a dangerous look. "Ok fine yes I gotta sugar daddy, I know you already guessed it. The way he was dropping money in my lap it was hard to say no. He's not bad looking even though he not my type. Mine is usually chocolate with cornrows but anyway I call my little friend Mr Silver." The girls burst out laughing at the name but also catching her describe Riley as her type. "Amazing right?! He is very flirty and very sweet and to be honest he just wanted company, he just so happened to be paying me to do so but it was so hard to say no when the first time he suggested a sugar-daddy-sugar-baby situation, he dropped 1K in my hand as if it was nothing. Talking about it now I kind of feel bad. I mean I really am using this guy for his money and I'm going to have to stop, I mean he could have a whole family and I wouldn't know. I haven't seen no ring or no pictures on his home or lock screen but still, there's still a chance there is a secret family somewhere. I'm not trying to be involved in no scandal or anything. All I know is I am glad I took that quick trip back home to Jamaica the other day otherwise I would have gone even crazier. Seeing my family put me more at ease which is probably why I am glad we had this conversation. It seems as if everything has started to fall apart all of a sudden and we all had no way of understanding how to handle it. It just took us longer this time to realise we are better together rather than trying to handle it ourselves... Man if only I wasn't such a broke bitch in college we wouldn't be having this conversation in a hotel room."

Cindy rolled her eyes. "How many times do we have to tell your dumb ass we don't care what could have been? I'm about to slap the shit out of you soon."

"Doing this made me have tougher skin. I was the weakest one out of all of us and I finally felt like I have control over myself." Jazmine pointed out.

Ming nodded in agreement. "For real, my parents were overwhelming sometimes and I felt like I had no say in what I wanted to do so it was nice to have full control over myself. They weren't your stereotypical tiger/Asian parents but they did have their intense moments that made me want to rip out my hair."

"Which is why I am now more grateful for my dad. He had to jump in the middle of me and my mum disagreeing all the time and I know it could be tiring for him but he still made sure that we were good."

"My parents just wanted me to be perfect all the time but I can't. Perfect cheer captain, perfect relationship, perfect college, perfect career, perfect family, perfect life. Too much perfect for me to keep up with. I like our mess of a life."

"Aww I like this mess too. Even though it needs a little cleaning here and there, well, everywhere." Royalty joked.

They all laughed before pulling each other into a group hug. This sisterhood was the realists anyone would see. Over 10 years together made them form a solid relationship. Ride or die, always there for each other. Their mother, father, brother, sister, cousin, auntie everything. They could find it in each other. Ming, Jazmine, Royalty and Cindy knew they could count on each other for anything. Even the past two months they spent barely talking to each other, proved how easily their lives were able to flip upside down and once they realised the direction they were going in, they were there to pull each other back together.

"How's it going with the twins?" Royalty asked Cindy and Ming once they pulled away.

Ming and Cindy shared a look. "You wanna do the honours?"

Ming shrugged. "Sure." She looked at Jazmine and Royalty with a bored facial expression. "They're boring as fuck. Our conversations are just so dry, I mean I know your identical twins but for fuck sake how are you both so boring? The sex is good but talking to them is such a drag. We were planning on cutting them off soon anyway. To be honestly, it's kind of just to piss our people off since they told their father about their little 'meetings' with the CEO's daughters that no one knew existed. Seeing our parents upset was funny." Ming and Cindy smirked mysteriously while the other two just laughed.

"You hoes are something else. Fucking them poor boys just to get at your parents." Royalty shook her head.

"Woow isn't it the pot calling the kettle black-"

"Ohh Cynthia is using big phrases!" Royalty cut her off, pretending to be shocked.

Cindy flipped her off before continuing. "You're fucking someone for money."

"Ohh that's cold." Jazmine commented.

"First of all, I ain't fucking him, I just be saying hi and shit. I ain't no hoe child." Royalty smirked. "I have never let an old white dick enter me and I doubt I ever will. As I said before, I like my niggggaaass."

They all laughed but was cut off by Cindy gasping.

"What?" Ming asked confused.

Cindy smirked. "I got an idea."

"Damn this ain't gonna be good." Royalty rolled her eyes, making Cindy punch her in the arm.

"Bitch. You will like it anyway." Cindy smirked. "We should all get matching tattoos. Right now."

"And what made you think of that?" Jazmine questioned.

"Me and Roy Roy was talking about get more since its been, what, nearly two years since we all got a tattoo."

"But get what?"

It was Royalty's turn to smirk. "Why don't we all choose 1 design each and all get it all?"

"Ohhh that would be fun. Unless you do some dumb shit like people on that show and I would have to fuck you all up on this beautiful autumn day." Ming smiled innocently.

"I'm with her." Jazmine grinned. "Let's just agree no dumb shit or faces. Face tattoos never look right..."

"Then its settled. I'll call Ed and Rummy to hook us up with some good artists." Cindy pulled out her phone and dialled the number as Jazmine got ready to leave.

* * *

Within an hour, the four dancers were standing in tattoo shop with four artist in front of them and Ed and Rummy.

"Welcome to Ink Life! These motherfuckers are the shit and can do anything you want them to do, trust me." Ed grinned.

Jazmine crossed her arms. "Even though you need a slap for giving Cindy pills... I guess I could say thanks or whatever."

"Ay look we sorry about that Jazzy. We didn't force her and when she didn't want to anymore we were cool with that. You know we always look out for our favourite girls." Rummy apologised. "So we cool?"

"We cool."

Ed clapped his hands together and pulled them all into a group hug. "Good. Now go get tatted!"

They all laughed but went over to a tattoo artist each. They already showed them what designs they wanted for each person and where, they just had to put it down.

"Cindy if you put a dick on me I will kill you." Royalty said as she had her shoulder cleaned.

Cindy rolled her eyes. "You just ruined the surprise."

"I will stab you."

"You two just can't help but be violent all the time, relax." Ming jumped in as she prepared herself for the needle to come.

Jazmine had her eyes closed, trying to relax. "What she said."

"Ugh fine."

After that, they all sat and had their tattoos done. Each time one was finished, they made sure they kept their eyes closed until it was covered so they could all be surprised. They trusted each other enough to know the others wouldn't do something stupid. Tattoos are serious things and it's not everyday you get four at once, one being your own design while the other three you had no clue about what it was going to be. All they could do now was sit down and relax.

Over two hours later, the girls were now finished and could reveal their tattoos to each other.

"Ok this was so long." Jazmine giggled tiredly.

"This was nothing for me. Remember the big dragon tattoo I got on my back." Ming pointed out.

"That shit took like 6 hours. We had to leave your dumb ass because it was taking forever." Cindy rolled her eyes.

"Come on guys! The anticipation is killing me." Royalty moaned.

"Damn Roy Roy relax." Jazmine tried to calm her down jokingly. "But she's right. Let's rip these bad boys off!"

Ming laughed. "We can do mine first which is the one on your arm."

They all grabbed the bandage and slowly pulled it off to reveal writing in another language. They all looked at each other.

"Shit Ming this is nice but it best not say 'I'm a hoe' in Mandarin or something." Cindy stared her down.

"I would never do that you idiot." She rolled her eyes but went on to explain. "It says 'My Sister's Keeper' because we all are there for each other."

"Awww that's so sweeet." Jazmine began to tear up.

"Jazzy its only the first one and you're crying already." Royalty shook her head.

"I know I know but this is the cutest shit we've ever done. I wanna go next and mine is on the shoulder."

"So you're the one that had to make us do the one that hurt like a bitch." Ming gasped dramatically.

Cindy shook her head. "I expected better from you Dubois."

Jazmine rolled her emerald eyes. "Shut the fuck up and take the bandage off, you're going to like it anyway."

They laughed but did as she said. This tattoo was an infinity sign with the word 'Gem' joined within it.

"Ohhh this cute too. 2 out of two is good and it can distract people from the scar on my other shoulder." Royalty nodded.

"I wanted to show that our friendship is infinite and how even when we're done with stripping, we're still the same, confident, no shit taking women who worked in a club. Dancing is not always a down side is what some people need to realise." Jazmine explained to them as they continued to look at it.

"I'll go next. I did the one on the forearm." Royalty smiled. They removed the next bandage and saw four hearts going down to their wrist with each person having a different heart shaded in. "I did it in age order. So Cin is the oldest, she gets the first one, then Mi, then Jazzy and finally I got the last heart at the wrist. Simple but nice."

"I was never big on getting heart tattoos but I like this one." Cindy commented.

"Glad you like it."

"Yeah as you said, its simple but nice." Ming smiled. "And last but not least its Miss Cynthia."

Jazmine pointed at her. "You can't fuck this up. Its 3 out of 3. We will kill you if you mess up."

Cindy rolled her sapphire eyes. "Never. Just take that shit off."

So they did. Cindy had designed them to have a rose on the thumb with a different colour outlining the flower. For Ming and Cindy's paler skin, they had red tattoo paint and for Royalty and Jazmine, they had white.

"I think we just made the best set of tattoos for friends all at once." Ming joked.

"I meaaann, no one is on our level at all. They get one tattoo they all agree on, nah we got four different one without even knowing and still got the best result." Royalty gloated.

"Yes! We need to take a picture of this." Jazmine grinned. She took out her phone and asked one of the artist to do it for them which they happily did, glad their clients like their work. They took group pictures of each tattoo and posted it before going to pay.

"Its on me, I got sugar daddy money." Royalty announced.

"Who you still need to tell its over with." Cindy gave her a pointed look as she frowned.

"Aww. Do I have to?"

"Yes." The other three said together.

"...You guys are no fun."

They all started laughing until they were cut off by Jazmine's phone ringing, when she looked at the calling id, she was shocked and showed her friends who were shocked too.

"Answer it." Ming encouraged so Jazmine did and put the phone on speaker.

"Hello?"

"_Emerald! Girl it has been too long how you been?"_

"I've been good Cotton, I'm just her with the rest of the Gems."

"_Am I on speaker?"_

"Yeah."

"Hey girl."

"Sup Cotton candy."

"Hi Cotton."

"_Hey Gemmms, we miss you here!"_

"We miss you all too." Jazmine smiled lightly.

"Well besides Bunny of course." Royalty rolled her eyes.

"_Trust me... no one cares for that skank, you couldn't have taken her with you?"_

"Heellll no! That white girl is making the rest of us look bad!"

They all started to laughing but then Cotton suddenly got quiet again.

"What's up with you? You sound upset." Jazmine asked concerned.

"_Girrl, you don't even know the half of it."_ She took a deep breath. _"It's__ as if you got out of Chicago just at the right time, shit has really hit the fan here."_

The girls all looked at each other, they knew what she was talking about. They would catch up on news in Chicago ever now and then and things just seemed to get worse and worse out there. The war the Panther's were talking about was really real. It was sad to just sit there and watch. They knew how evil the Russian's were being so seeing it unfold on tv was scary to see. They were really polluting the streets of Chicago and they hated that they were just sitting in a nice hotel while they suffered. They knew they couldn't do nothing but it still hurt. They were also frightened for Huey, Riley, Hiro and Caesar. They knew they were grown men and knew how to handle themselves but they couldn't help but to be scared for them. All this time apart was killing them, they needed to see them. Little did the girls know, their ex 'man' was feeling the exact same way.

"Yeah girl we heard things are crazy out there..." Was all Royalty could say. None of them knew how to respond, it really was all crazy.

"_Yeah well."_ They heard Cotton's voice crack which was starting to get them paranoid._ "Chyna got caught up in all the mess... she started taking cocaine and she... she-"_ Cotton took a deep breath while the girls hung onto every word. _"Chyna overdosed yesterday morning, she was just found today."_

Their eyes grew wide as they felt their hearts drop down to their stomachs.

"Chyna? As in fine China, Chyna?" Ming asked in disbelief.

"_Yes, __fine__ Chyna."_

"But-but how?" Jazmine stuttered.

"_Gems__ I wish I knew. I want to kill whoever introduced her to them fucking drugs, she didn't need them in her life. Look how quick her life was taken from it... I even talked to the managers last week about it and they told everyone to not use that poison but I guess it was too late... fuck I wished I did something more."_

Cindy sighed. "Don't beat yourself over this, it's not your fault."

"_I know, I just wished I supported her more. I can't help but to feel guilty... but her parents are looking to do the funeral next month, I would really like to see you there, I know she loved you four. I missed you guys too, it's been so long."_

"We miss you too Cotton, we're sorry for disappearing out of thin air, just needed a break for a little while."

"_It's cool girl, I get it. I'll keep you updated with anything that happens. Bye Gems."_

"Bye Cotton."

They hung up the phone and stood in silence. Their hearts still in their stomachs, struggling to find its way back behind their ribcage.

"Is- is it really that bad out there?" Jazmine questioned out loud.

"Man what kind of fucking shit is this?! Them Russian motherfuckers are getting on my fucking nerves. They don't care about no one except their fucking selves! They need to just die already." Cindy shouted in frustration. They were glad the shop was empty.

Everyone else blood pressure began to rise too.

"Fi true! They can't just leave people alone with their toxic bloodclaut drugs." Royalty kissed her teeth.

"Now we have to go and bury one of our good friends." Jazmine said sadly which made them all pause and realise something. Their minds started to race 100 miles per hour. After two whole months, they were going back. Back to the place they had to run from last but this time, they didn't want to run anymore.

"... We're going back to Chicago guys..." Ming whispered but they heard.

They were going back to Chicago.

* * *

**I know it has been so long. This has been done for about a week but I wanted to post on my birthday which is today ayyy. I wanted to post a T&T chapter today but I never got the chance to finish it because of how busy I have been but at least you got one today.**

**But I guess there was a lot to take in this chapter, hope you can all keep up lool.**

**Chel29: The sugar daddy situtation isn't over yet so we just gotta wait and see. And I think we all have considered a sugar daddy at one point loo.**

**Guest: He is very ew I know. See, people liked him at first now not really but you already know that that can't run if that was my fuck buddy too.**

**malevolentedge: Very ew**

**BoondocksFanGirl: Sorry it was so late but we got there.**

**Now I am not going to lie, the next chapter will take more than a min because I havd a lot of things to do for the next month but I am glad I got this chapter out for you. You know what to do, send them reviews my waayy.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	32. Chapter 32: Welcome To Chicago

"We are now landing at Chicago airport, please ensure that you have all your belongings with you."

Jazmine took a deep breath as she felt the plane descending from the sky. She looked over at Cindy sitting next to her and saw her looking a bit green.

"Do you feel sick?" Jazmine asked as she rested her hand on Cindy's pale one.

Cindy slightly nodded. "It's less from the flight, more from the reality that is about to come."

"I understand fully. I feel the same way."

"Yeah. At least the funeral is tomorrow and not today. It gives us some time to prepare ourselves."

They felt the plane wheels touch the floor as they pulled up to the terminal.

"Can you believe it has been a whole month since Chyna has been dead? It doesn't seem real."

It has now been just over three months since they have left Chicago and a month since they found out their dear friend and fellow striper had died from the hands of drugs. Their hearts felt heavy as they entered a place they were uncertain if they would see again.

"You know what I also don't believe, all that mess we left back in Woodcrest." Cindy smirked as the plane finally stopped.

Royalty heard what she said and leaned over the seat to join in the conversation. "I mean, we just leave a trail of our pixie dust where ever we go."

Ming looked at her strange. "Pixie dust is far from it."

They made their way off the plane and laughed as the thought back to the mess they left behind.

* * *

_Three weeks ago_

"_It's time you all cut them men out your life."_

"_We can't keep them a little longer?"_

"_No."_

"_Why not?"_

"_Because you don't need that in life. We agreed on that the day we got our tattoos. Its been a week now and they're still in your lives."_

_Jazmine stood with her hands on her hips in front of her friends as she lectured them. Ming and Cindy had not told the twins they was not messing with them anymore and Royalty was still receiving money from her sugar daddy._

"_Jazzy, he just dropped a couple of more hundreds in my account as we speak. I don't know if I'm ready to let him go just yet." _

"_Royalty." Jazmine said her name sternly._

"_Haha." Cindy mocked but Jazmine turned to her with the same tone._

"_Don't act like you don't have someone to cut off too."_

_Ming decided to join in. "I mean we can't-"_

"_No." Jazmine cut her off._

"_But just a little longer-" Royalty tried to add._

"_No."_

"_Just one more-" Ming now tried._

_Jazmine stared them down. "I said what I said."_

_Royalty crossed her arms and pouted. "You no fun."_

"_This is for the best." She held out her hand. "Phones."_

_The three girls looked at each other confused but handed over their phones. Jazmine searched for the men's contact number and began typing. "Now, get dressed. We leave in 45 minutes."_

"_Where are we going?" Ming asked as she stood up._

"_To say goodbye to your little play boys." Jazmine smirked._

_Cindy, Ming and Royalty looked at each other. "Nooooooo."_

_45 minutes later_

_Jazmine looked her friends up and down as they waited for the three men._

"_Why are you all dressed up? Its only drinks, you're not even going to stay here long."_

_Royalty flipped her 24-inch hair over her shoulder. "When do I ever look basic DuBois?"_

_Ming applied some lip gloss on her lips. "Just because we're cutting them off, doesn't mean we have to look rough."_

"_It's not like we're heartbroken about them, we just didn't want to break it off just yet." Cindy added._

_Jazmine shook her head. "Just sit your hoe ass down somewhere."_

"_Let's sit close in case one of us needs a quick escape." Royalty told them and they all agreed._

"_And I will sit close so I can hear the tea." Jazmine smirked._

"_Messy bitch."_

"_Heeyyy." Jazmine frowned playfully._

_Ming shook her head. "Let's just get this over with, they should be here soon."_

_Cindy looked up and saw the twins head pop in the bar. "They're here, dip!"_

_Royalty and Jazmine scrambled to their own place as the twins walked in. They looked around until they spotted the girls they were talking to. Putting on a big smile, they walked over to their table._

"_Here it goes." Ming mumbled as she took a sip of her drink._

"_Ladies." They greeted at the same time._

'_That is lowkey creepy.' Cindy thought. 'Glad we're breaking them off now.'_

"_So how come you text us all of a sudden to meet you here?" Mason asked as he sat down._

_Hunter went to call the waiter but Cindy stopped him._

"_Don't get too comfortable. We're not staying long."_

_The twins shared a look. "What's going on?"_

_Ming sighed. "Let me just start by saying, the sex was great." They had large smirks on their face until Cindy continued._

"_But it's not good enough. We're sorry but it is what it is."_

"_Huh? We-we don't understand. Everything seemed fine." Mason muttered._

"_Yeahhh about that. It really wasn't. We were kinda just using y-"_

"_Dad?" Hunter cut Cindy off._

_They girls looked confused at the twins shocked face._

"_Boys... what, are, you doing here?" The man muttered._

_Ming and Cindy looked at the man up and down. He was an attractive, older, white male in a crisp suit. They then saw him hovering over Royalty's table who looked about ready to run out the door._

_They all looked at each other, when a light bulb went off in all their heads._

"_Oh shit! Oh shit!" Cindy shouted and laughed._

_The other customers looked over at the shouting blonde but she didn't care._

_Jazmine was at her own table watching this all go down. 'I knew this was tea but this shit is hot!' She thought as she sipped on her drink, waiting for everything to unfold. A man came up to her smirking but she was not interested. "Sorry, I'm busy right now." He frowned and walked away. Jazmine tuned back into the conversation._

"_We're here with our dates." Hunter answered._

"_Ex dates." Ming corrected._

"_By why are you here dad?" Mason asked, he had a feeling he knew the answer but he needed to hear it out loud._

"_Nothing son, I just... wanted a drink."_

_Royalty decided to step in. She felt messy but she didn't really care. "Lemme get this straight. Mr Silver has two kids that are fucking my sisters. Mr Silver is also my sister's parents' business partner. Oh this is tv gold."_

_Mason looked at Royalty strange. "How do you know my father?"_

_Royalty smirked. "Let's just say your dad is very-"_

"_Why don't we just leave?" Mr Silver interrupted, embarrassed and wanting to leave quickly._

"_Dad are you cheating on mom?" Hunter asked disappointed._

"_No. She is just a stripper. The whore was scamming me for money." The older man lied._

_Royalty started getting angry and decided she was being nice enough but Cindy beat her to the punch._

"_Your daddy was my girls sugar daddy and was giving her a shit load of money just to laugh and giggle with him since its obvious your mama is a pretty boring person just as much as you are in a genuinely conversation."_

_Royalty added on. "Yeah. If I scammed you, you wouldn't have known. You were the one begging for this pussy but I don't get down like that. A little lap dance here and there still had you all on my dick. We just came here to break things off peacefully but I guess we can't even do that. Some ghetto shit." She crossed her arms._

_Jazmine saw things getting heated and decided to step in. "Heyyyy guys." She nervously giggled. "I guess this may be my fault since I was the one that text you all. Why don't we all just be nice to each other and relax."_

"_Yeah. Thank you for ruining my family." Mason huffed before storming out the bar with his brother behind him._

_Mr Silver turned to Royalty. "Delete my number." He told her sternly before following his sons._

_The girls all stood there shocked for a few seconds... and then they all burst out in laughter._

"_That was the best thing that could have happened." Ming said between laughs._

_Cindy downed the rest of her drink. "Bitch I know! Did you see the look on their face?"_

"_Delete my number." Royalty mocked dramatically making them laugh even harder._

_Jazmine was the first to die down her laughter. "I kinda feel bad..."_

_Cindy shook her head. "They had it coming."_

"_Lemme tell you sum. I know it wasn't Mr Silver's first rodeo. He knew what he was doing." Royalty pointed out. "But it was defiantly Mason and Hunter's first time finding out."_

"_This was not how expected this shit to turn out but is a bitch glad."_

"_Well lets get out of here. Jazmine got her own business to handle." Ming smirked as she dragged Jazmine out of the bar._

_Jazmine looked at them confused. "What are you talking about?"_

_Royalty called an Uber as they stood outside. "You need to talk to your parents properly about how you feel. No more lying."_

_She pouted. "Do I have too?"_

"_Bitch yes. Come on." Cindy grabbed her hand and practically threw her into the middle seat of the car._

"_I guess karma is a bitch..."_

"_Thank you."_

_The four-woman stepped out the car and stood in front of Jazmine's large, childhood home and she felt a shiver go down her spine and it wasn't from the autumn wind._

"_Do we really have to do this?"_

"_Yes."_

"_We sorted out our baggage, it's your turn."_

"_You can do this."_

_Jazmine took a deep breath but walked up to her parent's door and knocked. Her parents didn't trust her enough to give her a house key again so she had no choice but to knock._

_A few seconds went past and nothing. "See, no one is here lets-"_

"_Jazmine." Sarah opened the door and smiled but it flattened when she saw the girls behind her. "Oh, you brought the girls."_

"_We go everywhere together and I need to speak to you and dad." Jazmine told her._

_Sarah stepped to the side and let them all in. "I'll get your father and we can talk in the kitchen. You girls can wait in the living room. You know where it is."_

_Ming, Royalty and Cindy gave Jazmine a reassuring look before going their separate ways._

_Jazmine stood in the kitchen looking around where she spent many times making food. She had to learn to cook for herself at a young age since her parents started working late a lot so this kitchen brought back those painful and lonely memories. It also gave her the extra fuel she needed to say what was needed to be said. She was no longer that girl._

"_What is the matter Jazmine? I have work to do." Was the first thing Tom said as he walked in._

_Jazmine had to hold herself from rolling her eyes. "We need to talk."_

"_Are you pregnant? You do not need a baby with no proper occupation and a gang banger as the father. You have already set the child up for failure." Sarah asked._

_Jazmine eyes turned to slits. "Really? Forget it, I'm not pregnant. I am here to tell you that I am finished being fake just to please you. Yes being a stripper is not what I expected to happen but it did and through that, I have met a lot of good people in my line of work. Even met a good man."_

"_How is someone who kills people for a living a good man?" Tom threw his hands up._

"_He doesn't do it for fun!" Jazmine shook her head. "Stop side tracking me. I appreciate how you tried to help me at your firm but it's not for me. I want to figure out who I want to be without you breathing down my neck."_

"_You are 25 years of age Jazmine!"_

_Jazmine groaned. "This again! Just listen to me for once in your life! I am not that same scared little girl that lived under your roof. I am a grown woman who doesn't need her parents patronising her. Please, just let me be me."_

"_How can we trust you will make the right decision?" Sarah questioned._

_Jazmine shrugged. "You just gotta trust me... I'm leaving for Chicago in a few weeks. This time, it might be more permanent. Goodbye mom, goodbye dad." Jazmine pulled them both in a quick hug before calling the girls and walking straight out the house._

_The parents were left speechless as they watched their orange haired daughter walk back out of their lives for who knows how long this time. They knew the same Jazmine that left Woodcrest was not the same Jazmine that came back a few months ago. She had completely changed... it made them think. Maybe they underestimate their daughter too much._

* * *

"Ok mine wasn't as bad as you three." Jazmine pointed out. "You left a whole family in a messed-up situation."

"It's not my fault their daddy wanted to have a taste of some chocolate." Royalty smirked as they made their way to their home. One that hasn't been touched since they abruptly left.

"You didn't have to accept the-" Royalty gave Cindy a knowing look. "You know what you right. I would have done the same."

As the car pulled up to the house, their hearts dropped to their stomachs. They climbed out and made their way inside, dragging their luggage behind them.

"It's so cold in here." Ming commented as she went straight to warm up the house. The lack of activity and the beginning of Chicago winter was the reason why it was so cold.

"I can't believe it has been so long since we have been here and everything still looks the same." Royalty said as they moved further into the house.

Cindy looked at her as if she was stupid. "What did you think would happen? A complete make over?"

"... shut up."

"Well I don't know about you three but I want to be reacquainted with my own room and my own bed."

A thought popped into Jazmine's mind. "Do you think we should go to the club tonight? Just to hang and see the girls before tomorrow."

Royalty nodded. "I think that's a good idea. I miss that stage and the same locals. Sorry to Ed and Rummy but The Blue Moon is the only club I could really work for."

"That's true. You think... they, are going to be there?" Cindy asked nervously.

They. The girls knew exactly who Cindy was referring to. Huey, Riley, Hiro and Caesar. They haven't heard anything from them and they were anticipating their reconnection but didn't know how or when it would happen.

"I don't know... they didn't really go back unless they were chilling with us." Ming answered.

Royalty rubbed her arms. "If we go and we see them, what we going to do?"

They all stood there wondering that exact question. What would they do? Do they run and scream in fright? Do they act friendly? Or do they jump in their arms and proceed to have their way with them? Some many options but neither one seemed right.

"Maybe we should just figure it out in the moment because if we make a script now, we will forget it as soon as we're face to face." Ming told them and they all nodded as an answer.

"Sounds like a plan, to not have a plan. Any who, I call dibs on the bathroom first!" Royalty shouted as she ran to the bathroom closes to her room.

"I got the other!" Cindy shouted and ran to the next one.

"Heeyyy." Jazmine pouted as she now had to wait for Royalty to finish up before she could use the bathroom.

Ming shook her head but smiled. "It's good to be home."

Jazmine smiled back at her and took a deep breath. "It really is." She said before dragging her suitcase to her room, not even thinking about unpacking.

The four women got themselves freshened up, happy that they were now back home but another side of them were scared. They had no idea when or if they were going to meet the men that managed to hold their hearts for as long as they did. The uncertainty made anxiety build up in them and they had no idea how to handle it. They just hoped it all went well.

What the girls wasn't aware of was that someone now knew they were back. "There's people in the house... I got to tell boss."

* * *

In another part of Chicago, Ghost was face to face with his day one enemy. The punching bag.

Punch.

Punch.

Uppercut.

Roundhouse kick.

5 combo punch.

He paused and looked at the three younger people in front of him.

"You're turn." Ghost told them. He held his hand open before stepping back to allow the first person to go up. The girl stepped up, took a deep breath, before delivering the same sequence Ghost just demonstrated. "Good. Again." Ghost pushed and she delivered once again. "Ok, next." The first girl stepped out the way and the next girl exploded into the sequence.

Ghost knew it was essential to keep up with training. When it came to fighting, no one was on his level, which was why he would always teach the majority of the training sessions as much as he could. If he couldn't Dante would take over since he had a bit more skill than others. There were no denying how skilled Ghost was when it came to fighting, weather it was hand to hand combat or with weapons. He knew how to fight and he knew how to win. Everyone in the neighbourhood was shocked to see the young black boy master martial arts, especially at such a young age he did. His father was the proudest out of them all. He would see his son doing skills that would throw any street thug off.

The skill and discipline he displayed was amazing to see but, in his world, it was a little different. The lines were blurred. When he would just get into petty fights, he would be on the defence. He would only use his upper body and held back his punches. If it was for his life, for his gang, all bets were off. You should expect a knee to be coming straight towards your forehead in that situation. There was no telling what the young man would do.

"Ghost!"

Hearing his name pulled him out of his thoughts. He forgot where he was for a second. As he zooned back in, he saw that the three members didn't even stop working on the sequence he had set for them even though he knew they had finished. He was glad to see them still working hard but they weren't the ones that called them. He turned to see one of his men walking up to him.

"Yes?" Ghost simply answered.

"You know that house you make me drive by and check every now and then?" He asked to get Ghost to understand where he was going with it. He nodded so the man continued. "Well. I saw movement inside so I went and checked. There were four girls in there. I was going to burst in and hold them up but I wanted to come back and check it out with you first."

Ghost stood there shocked but kept his usual stone face.

'Four girls? But... it couldn't be. Could it?'

Ghost focused back on the conversation. "I will check it out, don't worry about it now. Thank you."

The man nodded before walking back out the training room. Ghost turned back to the three hitting the punching bag. "You did good today. Spar each other for at least 10 minutes. Remember what you have learned so far and use it. Show little mercy. I got to sort something out." They nodded and immediately went into a spar. Ghost collected his water bottle before jogging out the room to meet someone who would be able to confirm his theory.

He walked into the only room he knew he would find Pedro and found the young boy lying back in his chair singing and eating popcorn.

"Heart been broke so many times III don't know what to belieeevvve. Mama say it's my fault, it's my fault I wear my heart on my sleeeeevvve." The boy sang along to the song playing out loud.

"Ahem." Ghost cleared his throat to catch his attention.

Frightened, Pedro jumped up and some of the popcorn flew in the air and landed on the floor. "¡Mierda! ¿Qué carajo?" Pedro turned to see his boss standing there with his arms crossed. "Oh, um, Ghost. What can I do for you?" He asked nervously.

Ghost could see the redness crawling onto the boys cheeks but he didn't have time to wait to watch it to find its place. "I need you to track someone."

Pedro pulled in his seat and began typing away on the computer. "Who you want me to find? MC? Tri? HO?"

"I need you to track the one you put in the necklaces."

Pedro paused and slowly turned to the older male. "You serious?"

"I wouldn't ask if I wasn't. Don't ask why." Ghost told him sternly.

"Ok." Pedro cleared his throat before typing away.

Ghost stood there and watched the screen. The only one showing was him but then another dot popped up. This one was green and it was labelled 'Emerald'.

"The person you are looking for is in a house not far from your place." Pedro told him. "Need the location."

Ghost shook his head. "No. Thanks. Go back to... your singer or whatever. If you have nothing to do just go home."

Pedro began to blush from embarrassment again as he watched Ghost's smirking face turn and leave the room.

"Para alguien tan inteligente que puedo ser tan estúpido a veces." Pedro mumbled able himself before throwing a popcorn in the air and catching it in his mouth.

Ghost walked into his office to take a breather. He couldn't believe what he was hearing was true. They were back. Ming, Cindy, Royalty and Jazmine were back.

Jazmine.

Damn.

It has been so long since he has said her name out loud.

He would be lying if he hadn't thought about what he would do the moment he heard they were back, if there were every planning on coming back. He thought they would come back when everything was a bit safer but Chicago was far from it right now. There was still a lot of mess they had to clean up. So why were they back?

Realisation dawned on him. 'The funeral. Chyna's funeral is tomorrow. Of course they will come back for that. Caesar and Hiro told me they were close. Shit. Does that mean they are not staying long?' Huey wondered. He couldn't leave the over thinking to himself. He needed the rest to panic with him.

_Huey: They're back._

_Hiro: Who?_

_Caesar: Who else is coming back from the shadows? Shit man, can we never catch a break?_

_Riley: Nigga who? Can't just say that shit and dip. Speak up._

_Huey: The girls._

_Riley: NIGGA! Stop with the two-word shit! Tell us._

_Caesar: Reezy I think you know what he is talking about._

_Riley: If I did, I wouldn't have asked nigga._

_Hiro: He's talking about Cindy, Ming, Royalty and Jazmine._

_Riley: Oh._

_Caesar: Oh indeed._

_Hiro: How you know for sure?_

_Huey: One of the guys checked in on the house and said he saw four girls in there so I went to check the necklace I gave Jazmine and it was in the same location. Plus, their friend's funeral is tomorrow so it adds up._

_Riley: Shit, for real?_

_Huey: Yes Riley._

_Riley: Fuuuccck._

_Caesar: Well I don't know about the rest of you but I am going to see them. Tonight. I need to see her._

_Hiro: I will join you._

_Riley: I need to sort this baby shit out. The result should be here in a few days. She doesn't need to be around that._

_Hiro: What about you Huey?_

_Huey: I'm busy._

_Caesar: Sure. Whatever you say. Don't do it to yourself Hue. Its gonna fuck you up._

_Huey: I will speak to you guys later, I got things to do._

Huey didn't even bother checking the next few messages and took a deep breath. His friends were so ready to see Ming and Cindy again, Riley was making sure everything was calm for when he saw Royalty and here Huey was, doing nothing to see the woman who managed to bring a softer side to him like never before.

He had no clue what he should do or how he should feel. He didn't expect to feel so lost and confused as much as he was feeling now. It was such a foreign feeling to him. He always knew what to do and how to feel about everything, now he was just lost.

Huey sighed as he got up from his chair and grabbed his jacket. He knew there was only one person he could talk to about this and he was already dreading the conversation.

* * *

"What brings you down to this side of the hood?"

"I can't just visit my-"

"No."

Huey sighed. "I don't know why I even tried."

"Neither do I." Christian shook his head. "Now if you planning on staying for a bit, hurry up before you let my damn heat out."

Huey shook his head at his father because he was starting to sound like his father. He walked inside and noticed how quiet it was.

"Where's mom?"

"Your mother is out with Trinity and Naomi and you know nothing good comes out of all of them hanging out together." Christian said as he poured Huey a class of whiskey before sitting back down in the chair in front of the tv. "So, what's got your ass so twisted?"

Huey looked at his dad strange but didn't bother challenging it. Instead, he took a deep breath, wondering how he was going to say it.

"Jazmine's back." Huey blurted out. He didn't expect to say it like that but that's just how it flew out his mouth.

Christian paused mid sip to look over at his son. He could see how conflicted he looked the way his eyes shifted nervously around the room. He was unsettled.

"Well, are you going to see her?" Was the first thing Christian asked but Huey didn't answer. He sighed. "Look, son, you obviously want to for you to come over here and feel the need to tell me. You're conflicted about what you should do." Christian observed.

At times like this, Huey was thankful for how well his father knew him. It saved him from saying a lot but he knew at some point in this conversation, he was going to be forced to blurt out everything on his mind and he was not looking forward to it.

"You need to stop denying your feelings for her. You're not doing yourself a favour, you're just going cause yourself pain and I do not want to see you turn into a bitter, OG with multiple baby mother. Your brother might be on the way if the damn test results come back saying the kid his. Damn you boys stress me the fuck out." Christian mumbled as he got side tracked thinking about how clueless his sons can be when it comes to girls. "As I was saying. The one time I met Jazmine I knew she was special. Same with Royalty. I ain't never seen you boys look so happy to bring a female around us but you just have to remember what you're bringing them into. You have to be grown and have that conversation about what you're going into. They need to understand your life and you need to understand theirs's and meet in the middle. If you don't, I honestly don't know how worse it could get than it already did. She's a tough one and a good one. I even see her being the mother of your kids and hopefully soon. I want some grand kids. I know you gonna have the first boy."

Huey couldn't help but to roll his eyes. His dad was dead set on believing he would have the first male out of him and his cousins. It seemed as if his father and uncles could only produce boys and his cousin had started to only have girls.

"Dad can you give me a chance to make it up with Jazmine before I get her pregnant." Huey told his him.

Christian chuckled. "At least you're thinking about it. You boys are impossible but listen to what I'm saying."

Huey took a frustrated breath. "What if I can't protect her again? What if the Russian's capture her again and don't even save her, instead they just kill her? I can't go through that shit again dad. Not, again. You saw how badly that end."

Christian looked at Huey shocked. "Breath Huey. Breath. Nothing is going to happen to her if you just keep your head on straight. Remember, you are Huey Freeman but you are also Ghost."

Huey nodded, understanding what his father was saying. His father would always remind him he wasn't more of just one. He could have a normal, decent life as Huey Freeman but he was a ruthless gangster of Ghost. He just needed to remember it.

The father saw his son was deep in thought and decided to add to the conversation. "Have I ever told you the day I met your mother?"

"Only about a million tim-"

"It was a warm, summer day in Chicago." Christian sat back and stared into the celling as he began to tell Huey again about the story of when Christian met Mackenzie.

* * *

_Some years ago_

_A young Christian Freeman out riding his bike with his two younger brothers right behind him._

"_Nigga where we even going?" Dominic asked his older brother._

"_We about to find some bitches!" Mario, the youngest, shouted and laughed._

_Christian shook his head. "You are the last person that should be thinking about fucking. Get them grades up first."_

"_Ohhhh!" Dominic popped a wheelie in excitement as he watches Mario jump off his bike and square up to his brother._

"_Disrespectful nigga. Fight me."_

_Christian sighed but jumped off his bike too. "I don't want to fight you bro."_

"_Nah you're asking for it. Come on!" Mario shook his head._

"_Fight! Fight! Figh- oh shit!" Dominic shouted before crashing to the ground._

"_Ow! Nigga what the fuck?!" The brothers heard a female scream._

_Christian and Mario ran over to where Dominic was lying on the floor but they were shocked to seeing a girl lying on the floor next to him._

"_Dom what you do?" Christian asked his brother as Mario helped him up._

"_Too busy watching your dumb asses fight." He mumbled as he grabbed onto his arm in pain._

"_I should beat your motherfucking ass for knocking me down. Don't you see a girl walking?! Acting like some dumb nigga like he ain't got no goddamn sense! By the looks of it, he doesn't!" The girl cursed as she got herself up and brushed her bruised body down._

_Christian shook his head before going over to check on the other fallen victim. "I am so sorry about my bitch ass bro. I hope-" He trailed off as he was finally face to face with who his brother knocked over and for once he was glad his brother was being careless._

_She looked at him strange as she noticed he suddenly stopped talking. "You hope... what?"_

"_I hope to find out who I am going to apologies to on behalf on the brother I am sure is adopted." He smirked._

_She smiled and shook her head. "My names Mackenzie."_

"_Christian."_

"_I didn't ask."_

"_But now you know."_

_Christian looked at every detail of her face. It was so cute, from her eyes, to her nose, to her lips. The dimples he could see from her smile was adorable. He was not going to let this girl pass up on him._

"_What if I said to meet me back here at 5 today?"_

_Mackenzie crossed her arms. "I would ask if your dumb ass brothers were coming too."_

_Christian looked behind her and saw the two play fighting, not even caring about his brother talking to the girl one knocked over._

"_Why do I need them niggas? I don't want any distractions when I want to get to know who Mackenzie is."_

_She looked him up and down. They looked the same age but he looked more... rough which made him look a year or two older. He was defiantly a hood nigga and she always said she would avoid them but she guessed she couldn't get away from the hood nigga charm. For some reason, she was taking in everything he was saying without a second guest._

"_You won't kill me?" She raised an eyebrow._

"_Well-" Before Christian could answer her back flirtatiously, a group of older men dressed in all black walked up to him._

"_Ay younging. The streets are hot so you and the rest of your brothers need to get home." The one in the front said._

_Mackenzie looked between the two. "Do you know him?" She whispered. She didn't want to seem rude but they were starting to make her nervous. She needed to get home and she didn't want to be caught up in anything. Why didn't she just turn and walk away once she stood up?_

"_You can say that." Christian nervously laughed. "Tell my dad and uncle we're coming now."_

_Mackenzie was shocked to see the men nodded their head. It was not like adults to listen to what someone younger has to say, that was until she heard his last name, it all made sense to her now._

"_Ite, he said don't be fucking about either Freeman." The man told Christian._

_The young girls' eyes grew wide as she looked between the brothers and the older men._

'_Freeman? As in...' She silently gasped as the same group of men pulled out a piece of black cloth and wrapped it around their mouth and nose. That's when she saw the Panther mouth. 'Oh... shit. I am talking to a gang leaders' nephew. You nearly kicked the shit out of a gang leaders' nephew... way to fucking go Mackenzie!'_

_Christian saw the colour drain from her face and panicked. "Hey! I'm not going to hurt you. By the looks of your face, you know the family I come from but trust me. I won't let anything bad happen to you when you're with me. I promise. Can you trust me?"_

_The young boy held out his hand in front of him and she looked down at him. As soon as she found out his last name, she should have been running for the hills but she stayed. She had no clue why. He asked her such a complex question but for some reason, her answer wasn't as complex as it should have been._

_She reached out and delicately placed her hand in his. She looked at how easily her hands slipped into his and started feeling warming than the current heat. They had no clue that one word could change their worlds forever._

"_Yes."_

* * *

"And that night, I met her in the same place despite me being on house arrest and we sat and talked for hours. Within 2 years, we were married and preparing to bring you into the word." Christian finished off happily. He loved telling people how he met the love of his life and he couldn't wait to tell his grandkids the same story.

Huey looked at his father and saw how peaceful he looked whenever he spoke about his mother. He wanted to feel that and he got close to feeling it with Jazmine. Thinking about it, their stories had some similarities.

They both had an idiot brother that caused them to stumble upon their girl and when they both heard the boys last name, they were taken back. However, they found trust in the Freeman boys to take care of them. Huey broke that trust and he was willing to gain it back. It had now fully dawned on him how much he couldn't lose a girl like Jazmine. He would never find someone like her again. Never.

He was not about to let her slip from his fingers again. He was about to set everything right.

"For once, I took something from that story." Huey smirked at his father who just chuckled.

"I told you it would come in handy one day. Don't doubt a nigga son."

Huey shook his head. His dad was something else. "I gotta go handle business, I will see you when I see you."

Christian stood and met Huey in a hug. "Make sure you speak to your mother. She's going to be upset you never called her but came to see me."

"I will. Later."

"Bye son." Christian waved his son goodbye before sitting back in his chair laughing. "I have no idea how I managed to raise not one but two clueless boys. Only God can help them now."

* * *

It was now night and Ming had just pulled up to The Blue Moon for the first time in months.

"Anyone got butterflies? I got butterflies." Jazmine mumbled the last part as she sank into her chair, she wasn't clear as to why she was so nervous. She decided to wear a purple jumpsuit that had just the right amount of cleavage and some heels.

"Grow some balls and let's go." Cindy told her and was the first to step out the car. Her black, thigh high boots stepped onto the concrete and she pulled down her black, long sleeve, body con dress down.

"Someone's eager to get inside." Royalty commented as followed Cindy. She had on a black, latex skirt with a pink, lace, bodysuit and pink laced up heels.

Ming locked the car and she laughed at Jazmine's nervous face. "Girl relax. We'll be fine." Ming choose to wear a green, off shoulder, woolly jumper, with white shorts and heels.

For their first time back at the club, they needed to look at if they had the time of their life away. They couldn't go in look rough, which is why they were glad their wounds were healed.

They strutted towards the entrances, boosting themselves with some confidence, where they saw their friend with a shocked look on his face.

"Gems?! Where have you been?!" T-Dog laughed as each girl gave him a hug.

"Aw T-Dog, we missed you." Jazmine smiled.

"Yeah which is why I ask, where have you been?" He asked again.

Ming decided to answer the question they rehearsed. "We just decided it was time to go back home for a littler while and clear things up back there."

"Well a little heads up would be nice. People around here were not too happy about you suddenly leaving. We thought we would never see you again."

"Trust us when we say we never planned any of it." Cindy told him truthfully.

"Well I won't keep you out in the cold any longer, get inside and get familiar again." He smiled cheerfully at them.

"Thank you T-Dog, I will make you some food to make up for it." Royalty told him and she saw his face light up.

"Yess! And don't be leaving me hanging either."

"Never."

They all laughed before going inside the club, where they were met with loud music blasting and girls dancing everywhere. Some saw the Gems walked in, looked shocked but smiled and waved excitedly to them.

"It feels so weird being here." Ming said as they looked around the room, trying to see who else they would find in the club. They saw regular customers there so at least they knew business was still doing good.

"Seriously and if we come back to dancing, I feel like it's going to be weird. We barely danced back in Woodcrest, Ed and Rummy just kept offering us money just so we didn't have to really work." Jazmine mentioned as they walked over to the bar to get a starter drink. The bartender greeted the four and gave them a drink on the house, which they happily accepted.

"Why do drinks always taste better when its free?" Royalty inquired out loud as she took a sip of her drink.

"Because it's free. That's why." Cindy grinned as the two tapped their glasses together and laughed.

"I don't know how-" Jazmine began to say but paused when something caught her eye. More like someone. "I did not just see who I thought I saw go into the office."

Ming had seen it too. "Yeah, I saw it too."

"Saw who?" Royalty asked lost. Her and Cindy were too busy talking about free drinks to see what they saw.

"I wanna know." Cindy began to look at the direction Ming and Jazmine were just staring at.

Jazmine stood up. "I think we should go say hi." And walk straight to the office.

"The white side is kicking in."

They all walked towards the back, smiling and waving at people calling their name. That's when they saw the one and only Bunny giving them a stank face and they gave her one right back.

Royalty knocked on the door, even though Cindy just wanted to barge in.

"Come in!" They heard the voice say from behind.

Taking a deep breath, Jazmine pushed open the door and her suspicion was true.

"Raven?"

Raven's eyes shot up from the paperwork in front of her. "Jazmine? Cindy? Royalty? Ming? What are you guys doing here? Here as in Chicago."

"Nice to see you too." Cindy mumbled.

"Well I am sure you know about Chyna... especially since it seems like you're running things here." Jazmine referred to all the paper in front of her.

"Yeah I do now."

"Wait. Pause." Royalty grabbed onto her head making everyone turn to look at her. "Is that a baby?!"

They looked next to Raven and saw a baby peacefully sleeping in their car seat.

"Damn, we that blind? How we not see that the moment we walked in?" Ming wondered.

Raven laughed as the girls walked towards the chairs inside. "Yeah, besides what you have heard on the news, a lot of things have been crazy." Raven saw at how eager they looked. She knew they wanted to know everything about what happened when they left and they meant more than what the news was saying. They wanted to hear from the gang's point of view. "So not long after you left, the Russians ran up on grandad Freeman and put him in the hospital but don't worry, he's ok." Raven had to quickly say as she heard them gasp and saw their eyes grow wide. "In retaliation, the boys ran up on three different locations and killed every motherfucker up in that bitch. In the process, they found this little man who I decided to official adopt which was the most drastic thing I have done but the best decision I have made."

"We were not gone for that long." Ming said shocked.

"I mean, how in the hell does all that shit happen. Woodcrest was hella boring while all this shit was going down." Cindy threw her hands up in disbelief.

"Well that's as exciting as it gets. Everyone has just been on edge ever since that day." Raven shrugged.

"What's his name?" Royalty asked. She loved babies and this one looked adorable sleeping in his car seat.

"Cairo. If you remember me telling you about me and the guys friends from when we were younger. The one that got shot and killed, its who he is named after and I made the right choice. It fits him so much already. He's 5 months now."

Jazmine smiled as she watched the new mom beam with pride, she wanted to experience that same pride. That's when she remembered the state they last saw Raven, she didn't look in too good of shape. "How's your ribs?"

"Oh them hoes are good. How's your injuries?"

"Physically, we good too, mentally... we'll get back to you on that." Ming half joked.

Raven gave a half laugh to go with the joke. "Yeah I feel you on that one. If you ever need to talk to someone that has seen some fucked up shit and has done some fucked up shit, I'm your girl."

"We'll keep that in mind."

There was another knock at the door.

"Come in." Raven called out. She looked down at Cairo. "When I tell you this boy can sleep good! I am so happy about that."

They laughed before turning to see who was walking through the door.

"So the news is true. The Gems are back." Cotton grinned as she walked over to pull each girl into a bone crushing hug. "I would like a heads-up next time when you wanna leave. I have been stressing out trying to keep things in order."

"We sorry girl, we didn't mean for it all to happen." Jazmine apologised.

"It's ok. I just hope you enjoyed your little holiday away from getting booty out."

Royalty snorted. "If you think that stopped, you're crazy."

The group of ladies laughed. "I really missed you all... too bad the circumstances that brought you back."

The mood in the room suddenly dropped as they all remembered what day it was tomorrow.

"I can't believe she's actually gone." Ming shook her head sadly.

"My cute ass fine Chyna." Cindy frowned.

"I wish I was here to help you get her clean Cotton." Jazmine told her fellow dancer but Cotton just waved her off.

"Don't beat yourself up about it. You were doing some much needed self-care, you shouldn't be worried about us."

Royalty sighed. "Some fucked up world we live in."

They all stood there for a few seconds as they all remembered the young dancer and all the good times they had together. They didn't want to think of her as what some people would view her. A crackhead whore. She was far from that, she just got lost in the drugs.

Cotton quickly wiped away the tear that managed to escape her eyes as she got an idea. "You know, in honour of her memory, I think we should dance to her favourite song."

The Gems all smirked at each other.

"But should we?" Ming exaggerated a thinking look as she rubbed her chin.

"I think we should." Royalty grinned. She loved Chyna's favourite song so she was happy to do a little dance for her.

Cotton grin flew across her face as she grabbed onto Jazmine and Cindy's arm. "Well you're not getting out of it now. You don't even have to change. These outfit are cute already."

"See, I knew my ass was gonna shake today."

Ming rolled her eyes. "Your ass is always shaking."

"Ok and you're point?" Royalty stuck her tongue out childishly and Ming did the same back.

Raven laughed and stood up too. "As much as I would love and see you perform, I need to get baby boy home. I know he mad as hell he's sleeping in a car seat at this time. I wouldn't have brought him here if I had someone to babysit him."

"Alright. See you later mama Raven." Jazmine winked at her.

"...Please refrain from calling me that again. For all of our health."

"No promises."

With one last laugh, the Gems and Cotton all said goodbye to Raven before making their way towards the stage. Cotton had told the DJ what they were doing and he was more than happy to comply.

"Ladies and gentlemen, if I can have your attention please for this exclusive special performance that is about to go down. This was not even planned but today you are all lucky winners to witness what is happening tonight. Now, give it up for Cotton and our returning favourites, Gems!" The DJ announced on the microphone before playing Cockiness by Rihanna.

Cotton lead the group up on stage, everyone began to cheer and some already started throwing money. All the girl's styles were slightly different but it didn't look messy or out of place. It looked sexy and even planned. They all looked good up there.

Jazmine, well, Emerald, was grinning ear to ear as she danced on the stage she was most familiar with. In Woodcrest, the stage was nice but it was nothing compared to the stage and energy that was here in Chicago. It was different and something her home town couldn't do.

They danced all the way to the end of the song and people cheered and clapped to the girls before throwing the last of their money. They collected it all before making their way off the stage.

"That was crazy! You guys really didn't skip a beat!" Cotton exclaimed excitedly.

"That really was crazy." Cindy nodded. She didn't expect herself to get so into it the way she did. She was dipping it low and giving teasing looks the whole song. She guessed she did it specially for her friend.

Ming grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge they had in the dressing room. "Damn I'm getting old."

Jazmine lightly shoved her. "That split says otherwise."

Ming rolled her eyes and just took another sip of her water.

"How much did we make?" Cindy asked as Cotton finished up counting their tips.

"We made 753." Cotton told them as she counted the last few.

"Damn for a week day, that's good."

"Yeah and we can split it 5 ways." Cotton shrugged.

An idea popped into Jazmine's head. "Why don't we give to Chyna's parents? I know funerals are expensive and even though that is not a lot, it's still something."

"I think that is a good idea, we can bring it tomorrow." Royalty agreed.

Their moment was ruined when an annoying voice popped around the corner.

"Well look what the cat dragged in. Seems like Diamond, Emerald, Ruby and Sapphire found their way back home." Bunny gasped dramatically as she looked around the room to see the five no longer smiling.

"What do you want rabbit?" Royalty asked annoyed.

She stomped her foot frustratedly. "How many times do I have to say its Bunny, not rabbit."

"Bunny, rabbit, bunny rabbit, same thing." Royalty shrugged, not caring about the tantrum the girl was close to having.

Bunny took a step back. "Ugh, can't you go back to where ever you were before. We were doing just fine with you gone."

"You sure about that? Because everyone looked pretty excited to see us up there." Cindy shrugged.

"That didn't mean anything but I just want to say you should be careful with your friend here." Bunny pointed to Cotton who raised her eyebrow in confusion. "She's been sneaking off with your Asian and dread boyfriend a lot since you left. I wouldn't trust that snake bitch but that's none of my business." Bunny covered her mouth dramatically before walking out the room laughing, feeling as if she just caused some trouble between them all.

Cindy and Ming looked at Cotton with an eyebrow raised. "So what's she on about?"

Cotton rolled her eyes. "She's just trying to cause trouble. Yes I have been seeing them a lot but that was on business wise. I told them about Chyna taking drugs and they also made a deal with the whole club to push weed while we were working and it has actually been doing well."

"It's like what they do at Empire. Damn they know what they be doing." Cindy pointed out.

"Smart." Royalty commented.

"When was the last time they came here?" Jazmine asked for Cindy and Ming's sake.

"About two weeks ago, that's when Raven came back to officially take over the club."

Before they could continue their conversation, Daisy and Melody came in excited.

"Gems! It's been too long." Daisy smiled as she hugged each girl. "But sadly, someone might miss you more than us. Ruby you got room 2 and Sapphire you got room 5."

They all looked confused. "But we're not here to work."

Melody shrugged. "Well they said you will really want to see them."

Jazmine had a feeling on who it was. "I think you should go and check it out. If it's a creepy guy, just turn back out."

"I mean it couldn't hurt to check." Ming sighed. "Alright I'll go."

"Yeah I'll go too."

"Ok, we'll meet you back in the main room when you're done." Jazmine told them.

They all agreed and made their way outside. Cotton went back to work, Royalty and Jazmine found a seat by the front while Ming and Cindy went to the rooms they were called to.

* * *

Ming walked into room 2 and took a deep breath. Going to rooms was not something she did so to be called to one of the rooms was scary. She pushed open the door and walked in.

"So I think there's a mix up-" She started to say but paused once she saw who was inside. "Oh shit."

The person stood and smiled with their arms wide open.

Ming began to tear up before running straight into their arm, nearly knocking them down.

"I missed you."

"I missed you too Hiro."

Hiro tightened his grip on her, scared to let her go because the last time he did, it killed him. He refused to let her go this time. "I don't think you fully understand how much I missed you."

"I think I do." Ming mumbled in his arms but he still heard and chuckled.

"Let's sit down and talk." He told her. When he tried to move out her arms, she pulled him closer. "I guess I will carry you." She nodded in his shoulder so he scooped her up, walked over to the couch and sat down with her on his lap. "How you been? How was where ever you were?"

She shrugged. "Good I guess. As you can see my neck is all healed up and we went back to Woodcrest. Where we lived before. Saw my parents, they still mad. Not going to lie, I did sleep with someone but they had nothing on you. I was just using him for sex."

Hiro was shocked at the confession and just had to laugh at her. "You know you didn't need to tell me that, we were not together when you slept with him."

"I just felt like I should tell you."

"Well if you want to know, I didn't sleep with no one while you were gone."

"Good, now we can focus on us." Ming said as she began to stroke her hand across his jawline.

"What does that mean?" He asked her.

She leaned forward and placed a soft on his lips. "I think you know what I mean."

Hiro let a ghost of a smile form on his face. He wished it was that simple. "Look what happened last time Ming, do you really want to take that risk again? I mean, this time around I promise no harm will come to you but it's not as easy."

Ming took a deep breath. She, like the other girls, have thought long and hard about being in a relationship with these dangerous men. To anyone on the outside, they looked crazy but they didn't know them like how the girls knew them. They were really some sweet men who just so happened to murder and sell drugs for a living but that was a whole another thing.

"I know and I want to be with you but that's only if you want to do this." Ming told him truthfully.

"Are you 100% sure? Your life is about to be crazy." He warned her.

Ming smirked and kissed him on the lips. "My life is 65% crazy, your 35% is just what I'm looking for."

Hiro laughed but kissed her back. "So, will you do me the honours of being my girlfriend, again, and taking the 35% of my crazy life to add to your 65%?"

"Of course I will, again and this time, we will do this right."

The revived coupled smiled at each other before pulling each other in a tight hug before going into a full blown, much needed, make out session, not caring that this room might need to be used for real work.

* * *

Cindy made her way to room 5 and had no clue what to expect so she was on guard the whole time. If she needed to jump someone, she was ready. It didn't matter she was wearing a dress, she will beat anyone down.

The blonde pushed open the door and walked in. Strangely enough, it was empty.

"What the fuck?" She said out loud. That's when felt two hands grab her waist. "Oh hell no!" Cindy screamed.

She swung her elbow back but the person ducked and spun her around.

"Baby girl relax."

"Caesar?!" The two stared at each other with wide eyes. Caesar thought it would be cute to surprise her the way people did in movies but he should have known better. Cindy was always ready to swing for anything.

Caesar held a big smirk on his face. "Hey baby."

Cindy gave him a back hand on his shoulder before pulling him into a hug. "You're so stupid! Why would you scare me like that?"

"Because I thought it would have been cute." Caesar admitted as he pulled her closer.

"Well it wasn't. I nearly knocked you the fuck out."

Caesar pulled his head back and gave her a look. "You sure about that."

Cindy gave him a look back. "I played basketball all my life, I know how to get away from someone. The last guy that grabbed me cheated since he used a drug to get me."

Caesar instantly stepped back and let his smile dropped. "I am so sorry about that..."

Cindy sighed as they both got serious. "I'm ok. I'm breathing, I'm alive."

"But you still were hurt because of me."

"Hm, I wouldn't say because of you because that man is evil on his own." Cindy told him. This was exactly what her and her friends had planned to tell the boys. Even though many would say it was their fault, the girls couldn't fully blame them. It just wasn't in their heart to do so.

"It doesn't feel-"

Cindy cut him off by pulling him in for a kiss. They held their position for a few seconds before Caesar pulled his head back shocked.

"Did, did you just kiss me? Like, you actually kissed me." He said in disbelief.

Cindy rolled her eyes. "Yes. Don't make me regret it."

"Trust me, you won't." Caesar smirked as he scooped his hands around Cindy's thighs and put her legs around his waist, catching her off guard. "I don't think you understand how hard it has been without you. So many things I wanted to tell you but I never got the chance to."

"Then tell me." Cindy's blue eyes looked him deep in his soul, making him blurt out what was on his mind.

"It's been hell since you left and I took that as a sign. The short time I knew you, I knew that this was going to be a forever thing. You bring something different that I never expect to fall for. Not going to lie, I did not expect to fall for a white girl," Cindy rolled her eyes at that but couldn't help but to laugh, "but I don't regret doing so. This time around, I want to do it right. I am going to show you I am the right man for you. I will protect you and make sure you do not experience no pain ever again, especially not because of me."

Cindy was not one to get emotional but she could feel herself becoming emotional. No man has ever said that to her before and it felt good to hear it. She knew Caesar could keep her safe but she needed to let him know that she was not going to let no man punk her the way they did before. She was coming back stronger and crazier. He just had to be ready for McFearsome to rise from the dead and not let anyone run her over again.

"Ok. If we do this. We do this right. I ain't no Disney princess that needs saving every 2.5 seconds, I can handle myself. I don't understand why I let them men punk me the way they did but I'm back and I'm better. I will fight anyone who needs to be put in their places for fucking with me."

Caesar looked at her shocked. He knew she was naturally like this but seeing it again after months away was a big turn on for him. Nothing was sexier than a strong, independent woman who knew what she wanted.

"I never doubted you for a second."

Cindy leaned forward and rested her head on Caesar's forehead. "Good." They smiled and laughed together, feeling safe in each other's arms once again.

* * *

"Girl who you think they with? It's been 20 minutes." Royalty asked Jazmine. The club had begun to die down now as more people started to leave. Ming and Cindy and walked in the rooms and they haven't heard anything else since them.

"I don't know but it making me anxious." Jazmine confessed as she looked towards the private rooms. A flash back to when the Russian attacked the two popped into Jazmine's mind and she immediately felt sick. She should've check on them a long time ago. "Um, I think we should check on- never mind." Jazmine started to stand but saw her two friends walk around the corner with two males on their arms which shocked both Jazmine and Royalty.

"Wait, Hiro and Caesar's here? You think Reezy and Huey is too?" Royalty asked as she desperately started looking around the room.

"I don't see them." Jazmine started looking around too. "But if they came, they would've come to see us, wouldn't they?" The question was more to herself. She hoped that Huey didn't avoid her like the plague. She wanted to see him so badly.

The two groups to meet up and they greeted each other.

"Royalty, Jazmine, looking great as always." Caesar smiled charmingly as he finished giving Jazmine a hug as Hiro finished giving Royalty hug.

"And you guys look tired." Royalty joked.

Hiro laughed. "Yeah you got that right. It's been none stop work since them fucking people came."

The mood shifted a little as they all thought about what was happening out in the real world. The same world that torn them apart in the first time.

"How you been handling things?" Jazmine asked.

Caesar sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Truthfully, it's been stressful. This is a full-blown war happening outside and it's not easy for anyone but if Huey can have it his way, it will be over soon."

"Speaking of Huey, where is he?" Jazmine asked. She really wanted to know.

"He's taking care of something but I am sure he will come see you soon."

"Wait, wait, how did you know we were back?" Ming suddenly asked, she was so caught up in seeing Hiro that she forgot to ask.

Hiro and Caesar shared a look, they knew they had no clue about the necklace and didn't want to ruin the nice reunion.

"Well someone had to look after your house while you were gone. Someone told us that they saw four females inside and we knew it was you." Hiro told them. It wasn't a full lie, that was the first way Huey found out about them being back.

"Oh, ok. That makes sense." Cindy nodded.

"So, where's Reezy?" Royalty asked as she looked between the two.

Caesar and Hiro shared another look, wondering what to say to this. They knew he was having some could be baby mama drama and Royalty didn't need to hear she could be a potentional step mom from them.

"He's sorting some things out too."

Royalty knew they were hiding something, she just didn't know what and she couldn't wait to find out. "Ite then."

"Hey, it's getting late, we should head out now. Got to wake up early." Ming informed the group.

Jazmine frowned. "Forgot about that... poor fine Chyna."

"Right, sorry about your friend. It's sad about what happened to her... just to let you know, she can at least now look down at her supplier being the devils bitch." Caesar said which made the girls wonder if they should laugh or whatever other emotion that could react to what he said.

Ming wrapped her arms around Hiro. "I don't wanna leave you again."

"I will see you soon. Don't worry." Hiro kissed the top of her forehead.

Jazmine pouted. "You guys are so cute."

Cindy shook her head and pushed Jazmine towards to door. "Don't get all teary eyed on us. It's your bed time."

"But you guys are all so cutteee. Look!" Jazmine pointed to Cindy other hand holding onto Caesar's other.

"This is going to be you, hopefully very very soon so you don't have keep aweing at us."

"Well excuse me for loving to see love. Hmp." Jazmine turned her head before stomping out the club. Every time she passed someone she knew, she would smile but as soon as they were gone, she put back on the fake attitude she had before.

Royalty shook her head. "I have no idea how we manged to deal with that hoe for so long."

"I was going to ask the same thing." Caesar chuckled but stopped when Cindy slapped his chest. "Ah! What was that for?"

"That hoe my friend, sadly, don't be rude."

Caesar looked at her in confusion but all he could do was shake his head. 'This girl really is insane for the most part, isn't she?'

The males separated from the females, making promises to see them soon before making their way home.

Cindy and Ming couldn't help but smile every now and then as they kept thinking back to when they finally saw the men that have been on their minds for months, now feeling they can move onto the next chapter of their lives. Then there was Jazmine and Royalty. They were sad that they didn't see the Freeman brothers the first night they arrived back to Chicago but knew they would see them soon. They were planning on going to their house if they didn't see them within the first week of been back but now, they knew that they know they are back, it made them feel uneasy. They wondered why Hiro and Caesar came to see Ming and Cindy but Riley and Huey couldn't do the same thing. It made them feel a bit angry at the same time.

The dancers also questioned if the brothers moved on, that's why they never came to the club. It would make sense, the moved on and they were old news.

Just thinking that made their hope decreased massively but this wasn't a time to be thinking about their feelings. They had a friend to bury and they needed their heads screwed on the best way they could.

The Freeman's could wait.

* * *

**Finally got another chapter out, suprised it took so long consider I have been stuck at home. Everyone I hope you stay safe where ever you are in the world and we're all going to get through this. Prayers to everyone.**

**Thank you to all the birthday wishes and make sure you drop a review for this chapter, hopefully next one isn't far behind. Let me know how you feel about how Christian met Mackenzie, I never expected to add it but I think it fits well.**

**Also I am now on wattpad where you can find me under the same name so look out for that too.**

**Until nex time**

**-TBG**


	33. Chapter 33: A Funeral

**A little bit of sexy time coming up but this is a M rated story... :)**

* * *

The wind was being bitter today.

Today, two parents are burying their child that unfortunately couldn't overcome her drug addiction which took her away from them.

People stood around the burial crying and holding onto each other for comfort as they listened to the pastor sing as the coffin lowered into the floor.

Ming, Cindy, Royalty, Jazmine and Cotton all stood in a line holding onto each other. Cotton was bawling as she felt as if she had lost a little sister while the other girls had tears in their eyes. It was an emotional time. A funeral was hard for anyone but especially seeing a young, promising woman not being able to stay on the right path was painful to see.

Jazmine felt the tear leave her green eyes and run down her cheek. She debated if she should wipe it away but it slipped off her face before she had time to. Death was especially scary to her. The fear of someone she loved no longer being there with her made her sick. She had a hard relationship with her parents but just the thought of them not being here on this earth with her broke the whole of her spirit. No matter what, she loved them and she knew they were coming from a good place, now that she was back in Chicago, she was going to change her life around. It was time to anyway.

"I will miss her so much." Cotton sniffed as she wiped the tears from her damp cheeks.

"I hear that girl..." Ming mumbled as she rubbed the girl's shoulder in comfort.

Jazmine shook her head as she watched people throw dirt over the glossy, black casket. "She deserved so much better than this. She said she wanted to go back to school and become a accountant. I- I-" Jazmine's emotions caused her to choke and stumble over her words. She couldn't even say what she wanted to say.

"All I know is this is a wake up call for all of us. I refuse to leave this earth with nothing to my name. I'm doing this shit right from now on." Royalty said with determination dripping from her voice.

"Preach sister." Cindy nodded along.

"I know, that's why we're going to be working hard on us. It's time to let the new girls take our spots, I want to create a new path in my life and being on that pole isn't going to get me to where I want to be." Jazmine added.

Ming moved the strand of hair that got in her face due to the wind. "It's not going to come easy, that's all I know. It's going to be a lot of hard work but it's nothing the Gem's can't handle."

They all smiled as Cotton looked on. "You know, I always admired your friendship. You have stayed strong for one another after all them years being together. I lost one friend but I still have my home girl from 5th grade with me on the outside which I am grateful to have."

"I am glad you have someone to turn to, we all need that one person. If not, things would be a lot harder." Royalty sighed.

"Well with whatever time you have left at The Blue Moon, I will be right next to you and supporting you." Cotton told them truthfully. They all shared a smile and pulled each other into a tight hug. They felt comfort in more ways than one and silently said their final goodbyes to their fallen friend.

The girls pulled apart and opened their eyes but as Cindy opened her pretty, sapphire eyes, it widened in shock. "Holy shit."

People looked at her confused, some wondering who this white girl was but Cindy ignored it as her eyes were glued on the new comers.

"What? What is it?" Ming asked her.

"Don't make it obvious... but looked who just walked up behind the woman with the big, red, feather hat." Cindy instructed.

Confused, but intrigued, they all slowly turned to see who Cindy was looking at. For the second time in the past few minutes, Jazmine nearly choked on herself and Royalty nearly did the same. There, stood Caesar and Hiro in all black, the later holding a single rose which he then placed next to the rows of flowers that were being put on top of the grave once it was filed with dirt. That wasn't the shocking part. It was the afro and cornrows that made them freeze in place.

"Holy shit indeed." Jazmine mumbled under her breath. The brothers stood side by side in their own all black attire and had shades on. Even with the shades, you could still tell who they were. Royalty and Jazmine didn't know why they were so shocked to see that they looked the same. Nothing drastic could really change on their physical appearance in those few months that had passed.

"I'm mad that the first thing my brain said was 'damn he fine'. Stupid hormones. Making a bitch act outta character." Royalty lectured herself.

"We both know you ain't mad at yourself for that. Plus, that's the first thing I thought when I looked at Caesar."

"So what you gonna do?" Ming asked the girls.

Royalty scratched her head. "I was planning on going to see them after the reception but I don't know now."

"We can still go but once we're finished here, we will just acknowledge each other so we have an understanding that we need to talk." Jazmine explained.

"Sounds good enough to me."

"Who's going up to them first?" Cindy looked at the girls who nervously shifted in their spots.

"Her"

"Her."

They pointed at each other. Once they realised what they were doing, they lightly frowned.

"You couldn't take one for the team?" Royalty asked her.

"No." Jazmine replied back.

With a deep sigh, they ended the conversation and watched Chyna's coffin get covered by dirty, courtesy of her emotional family and friends who stood around and watched.

Riley looked around the grave site, he looked everywhere but at the hole in the ground. He didn't like funerals. You would be surprised since his lifestyle was surrounded by death and there was a threat of death everyday but it was something you could just never get used to. Huey said they had to come to pay their respects which is why they were here. She was an employee and it wouldn't be good for business and it was the right thing to do anyway. Raven would have come but she had a family emergency to attend to and having a 5-month-old at a funeral was not something she wanted to do.

"Huey how long we gotta be here?" Riley quietly complained.

Huey looked over at his brother through his shades. "I told you we have to pay our respects. We're leaving after the reception."

"I feel bad man. I wish we could've done more." Caesar told them truthfully.

"Sadly, we can't save everyone. It's just something that we have to keep reminding ourselves." Hiro stuffed his hands in his pockets and slightly rocked back and forth as he watched the people who really knew the dancer, cry.

Riley smacked his lips and decided to look around the grave site but as he did, he unexpectedly did a double take at a group girls. He took off his sunglasses to make sure he saw what he saw.

"Ay yo Hue." Riley slapped his brother in his arm without turning away from where he was looking.

Annoyed, Huey moved his arm away from his brothers slaps and looked at him. "What Riley?"

"Nigga relax your black ass down and look who over there."

Still annoyed, Huey looked over to the direction Riley was telling him to look and that's when he froze. It was Jazmine, Royalty, Ming and Cindy. All standing there in all black.

"Of course they're here. This is their friend." Huey told his brother, doing his best not to sound shocked and nervous.

"She looks good..." Riley mumbled to himself as he watched Royalty flick the long, black, straight hair out her face.

"Why didn't you see them yesterday like we did?" Hiro questioned.

Huey slightly shrugged. "Didn't think she would want to see the person who was the reason she nearly died."

Caesar looked at him weirdly. "You know damn well she wanted to see you. She asked for you last night when me and Hiro went to see Cin and Ming. That was one of the first things they asked and we just said you had to sort something out. Same for you Riley. You just gotta sort your baby mama shit out."

"You think I don't know that nigga? Damn. Give me a break."

"You should've thought of that before you decided to have an orgy on your birthday." Huey lectured his brother.

Riley screwed his eyebrows at him. "Don't act all high and mighty now nigga like you didn't fuck Erica. Yeah I know."

"At least she not pregnant."

"She might be."

"Well on that note, let's just move on." Hiro interrupted them while Huey just shook his head. "Can we at least act civil for a few hours?"

"I guess."

"Whatever."

"Sure."

The hole was filled and it was now time for everyone to go back to the parents' home to pay their last few respects. As the crowd disbursed, the men made a silent agreement to go over to the only other people they knew here. The Freeman brothers were secretly nervous. They have dreamt of the moment if they ever met their special girl again but this was not how they pictured it, at a funeral. They wanted it to be in a much lighter setting where everything was calm and relaxing, seeing them at the strip club would've been better than this but they guessed this would have to do. Also, they knew it was too late to run back to the car because by now they would have definitely noticed them. Huey's afro was too big to miss.

"Who gon' speak first?" Riley asked as they slowly walked over to the group.

"I will since I already saw them, just be chill." Caesar told him. It didn't take long for the group to be face to face and everything in that moment became frozen. "Hey Cin." Caesar greeted as he pulled her into a hug and kissed her forehead and Hiro did the same to Ming.

Huey, Riley, Royalty and Jazmine all stood their awkwardly. They would look at each other, then away but Royalty and Jazmine wasn't too sure since Riley and Huey still had their sunglasses on. However, the brothers could see their eyes. Huey looked and saw Jazmine had light tears swimming in her eyes as if she wanted to let them drop but refused to. She had a look of relief but also worry as she looked up at him and right then and there, he wanted to wrap her in a hug and tell her everything was going to be alright but then again, was it really?

When Riley looked at Royalty, he saw the confusion and the want and he wanted her just as much as she wanted him. He wanted to run off from here and just be together alone and he wasn't even talking about just to have sex. For once, he just wanted to talk. He wanted to sit down and talk to her and finally tell her how he felt and everything that was going on since she left. He prayed she would still have him once he spilled his gut out to her.

"Jazmine."

Hearing him speak made her stop breathing for a second, especially since the first word he said was her name. It didn't feel real and it was almost like he didn't say it in the first place. "Huey."

Riley decided to follow his brother's lead. "Royalty."

"Riley."

It was awkward again and the two actual couples wanted to slap their foreheads in annoyance.

"I'm guessing we're all going back to the mama's house so we can regroup there, alright?" Hiro stepped in and they all nodded. "Alright, let's go."

With that, they all split up with a lot on their minds. That was certainly not how they planned any of it to go.

As the girls piled into the car, Jazmine peered out the car to see the boys doing the same. Ming began to drive off and Jazmine let out a heavy sigh.

"What's wrong girl?" Cotton asked. She had missed the interaction as she was on the phone to someone.

"The guy that owns the club, you know how we were kinda together? Well we didn't really leave on a good note you should say, same with this one and his brother." Jazmine pointed to Royalty who had a lost look on her face too. "We just ran into each other but it was just a bit... weird."

"Oh one of them ones." Cotton slightly laughed. "Look, I don't know what note you all left on but by the way you talk about it and how happy you were before you left, it should be worth a shot to talk out your problems together. I don't know the whole story but this sounds like a love story." She smirked making the car fill with light laughter.

Royalty kissed her teeth. "This shit is far from a love story. Where's the kiss in the rain?"

"You know Cotton is right about the first part. All you need to do is talk to them, that's what happened to me and Hiro last night, now we're back together and looking forward to the time we have together and we're not going to waste any time." Ming told the group.

"But that's easy for you. You were already together when we left." Royalty said from the backseat.

"Didn't mean it was any easier, you know that. All the time away gave us all that time to think and life is too short to over think. You gotta love in the present and go for what you want."

Cotton noticed how silent the car got and understood that their 'trip away' had more behind it but it wasn't her place to pry so she just let them be.

* * *

2 Hours had passed and Huey was ready to leave. They had paid their respects and listened to all the talking and prayers and he wanted to leave. He didn't know Chyna like that so being there any longer didn't seem right. He looked across the room to where the strawberry blonde stood with her friends, engaged in conversation. She looked just as beautiful as he remembered. Her curves were all still there, her skin still looked soft and no bruise was present. That's when he noticed two things, her new tattoo and the necklace. He had thought she had thrown the necklace in the suitcase and forgotten about it but it seems as if she really was wearing it everywhere which gave him some hope. It was sign that she still felt some type of way towards him by wearing it around after all this time. It could also mean that he was thinking too much into it and she just liked the simple chain. It was no secret that he was hoping for the first one.

As much as he wanted to talk her, this still wasn't the time to do so and he needed to get out of there. He turned to his friends and brother.

"Look. I think we've been here long enough so I'm leaving." He announced to them.

"You going to talk to Jazmine?" Hiro asked.

"I don't know..."

"I think you should. As I said earlier, she's waiting for you."

Caesar swung his arm around Huey. "Why don't you go up to her and tell her to come to your house?"

"Riley you should do the same. You need to talk to Royalty more than Huey needs to talk to Jazmine. Remember she could be a whole step mom out here." Hiro raised an eyebrow at the youngest.

Riley screwed his own eyebrows together. "I get it nigga. You don't have to keep reminding me."

"I just wanted to know that you're fully aware of how much your life is going to change."

"I guess it's a good thing she decided to do it early because I can't wait any longer. Wait, what am I saying? That baby ain't mine, the mama a hoe." Riley said stubbornly.

Huey shook his head. "Should've thought of that before. Now you're stuck with the consequences."

"When should it be coming?" Caesar asked, referring to the DNA results.

He shrugged. "Any time from today to next week."

"When you hoping for?"

"Ion know. Today maybe? Damn I need to talk to Royalty."

Hiro sighed. "Since none of you look like you're going to go over to them, go to the car and I will tell the girls to meet us at our house. There, we can have whatever talk needs to happen. Sound good?"

Again, Caesar and Hiro were the voice of reason for the Freeman brothers. They didn't understand why they were struggling to approach the girls so much. It was as if they were all north magnets and they just kept repelling each other however, they were very attracted to each other.

"I can deal with that." Riley announced for both of them.

"Good." Hiro sighed and shook his head. "You can both grow some balls now."

"Ay!" Riley shouted to him as he walked away. His raised voice caused a few people to look over at him but he didn't care.

"Come on Riley." Huey told his brother and lightly pushed him out the door.

"Ay that nigga is getting too brave."

"He's just doing what you failed to do." Caesar laughed at Riley's annoyance. "Just man up and do what you have to do, fight for what you love because as these few months have proved, you both have been depressing as fuck. We all have."

"But we got a lot of work done." Huey pointed out as the jumped in the car and waiting for Hiro.

"True but we have to learn to do both. Do business and take care of our girls and I know we can do it. Your daddy did it, your uncles did it, we can do."

Huey sighed and looked out the window. He rubbed his hand over his small beard, a new habit he had formed. "For everyone's sake... I hope you're right."

Hiro weaved in and out the mourner as he kept his eyes glued on his one destination. He didn't want to lose them in the crowd. It took him longer than he wanted, but he finally made it.

"Hey guys."

The group of females turned to see the Asian smiling brightly at them which was the brightest smile in the whole room.

"Hey baby you ok?" Ming greeted him with another hug and kiss. The young couple couldn't keep their hands off each other, every time they saw each other, they had to touch each other.

"Yeah... me and the boys were leaving now and um, Royalty and Jazmine." Hiro turned to look at the two who perked up at their names. "Huey and Riley want you to go back to their house so you can talk. They are nervous so they asked me to come over and tell you this so you can actually sit down and talk properly but don't tell them I told you that."

Jazmine and Royalty shared a look, both thinking the same thing. They actually wanted to talk to them, they weren't being ignored this whole time. A small amount of weight lifted from their shoulders as they now knew that Huey and Riley wanted to talk just as much as they did. Ming and Cindy got time to talk to their man, it was time that Royalty and Jazmine did. For some reason, they both knew they were going to go through a whole bunch of emotions in this one conversation.

"That's fine. We will leave 10 minutes after you so we can say goodbye." Jazmine nodded nervously.

"Me and Ming will just come along too. You two can fuck and I'll be with Caesar."

Royalty turned to her friend and smirked. "So you two can fuck?"

Cindy smirked back. "Of course baby." She said nonchalantly.

"Wow, didn't expect that answer."

Hiro lightly chuckled. "Alright. I will tell the guys and see you when you come. Bye." Hiro leaned forward and gave Ming kiss on the cheek before walking out the house leaving them all alone again.

The roommates all looked at each other, all thinking about different things but the same subject.

"Um... well I can't wait to go see my man after this as bad as it sounds." Ming admitted. Seeing Hiro dressed up in a simple suit and tie was very attractive even if the circumstances were not the best.

"That makes one of us. I just wanna know why Riley is acting so weird."

"Same with Huey." Jazmine nodded.

"Maybe they're just setting up something cute for you at their house?" Ming shrugged. They all turned to her with different types of confusion written on their face. "What...?"

"Nutin. Hiro got you whipped with a capital W, you never say some sappy shit like that. That's Jazmine's job." Royalty pointed to her fellow dancer who lightly frowned.

"Hey."

"You know what I mean."

Ming rolled her eyes. "I'm just saying. Those guys are way too in love with you two to just let you waltz past them."

"Remember what we agreed on when we were in Woodcrest. We going for these men and making it work. If it doesn't, we continue being the bad bitches we already are and then some. Get our money right and build a business from the ground up. No one can touch the Gems." Cindy hyped them up. These girls knew that the pole wasn't a permanent thing. Dropping out of college was not an easy decision but they were not going to let that stop them from bettering themselves and ensuring that their children and children after that are set for life.

Despite how much she disliked it during the time, Ming was good when it came to business and had a secret talent of being amazing at interior designing. She knew how to make a traditional, modern or family home just by flipping through a catalogue. She was the one that decorated the home they have stayed in since college days. A past time the girls would do was go through home magazines and point to things they wanted their dream home to look like. It got to the point where Ming had to force them all to make their own dream boards to put down all their ideas, going past it was driving her crazy and she just had to put it down. It was probably still in her room at her parents' house, if she still had one. It would take her a moment to get everything together but she felt as if she could become an interior designer and help new and old business be updated and appetising and she knew if she did start, her biggest projects were right at her finger tips. Jazmine, Cindy and Royalty.

It probably something that everyone hears all the time about people creating their own business but that was the way for some. Cindy loved sports and while staying in Chicago, there was a gym that everyone loved to go to but was sadly closed due to funding. Since then, it has just been collecting dust and people have found themselves bored on the streets. She planned to buy the place, get it cleaned up and reopened. If all goes well, she even wants to start her own basketball team and coach them, her first team being all girls. Her father gave her the tools to be a great ball player now it was her turn to return the favour. People underestimated her because she had the typical rich, white girl look at first glance but she was mean when it came to the court. No one expected her to be so ruthless which is where she got the nickname McFearsome. She was untouchable at one point and she wanted younger girls to feel the same.

For Jazmine, it has always been a dream for her to dance. She loved to dance ever since she was a child. Her parents would jokingly say that she danced before she could sit up. She did ballet when she was young but drop out once she saw a hip-hop class for kids next door. Tom and Sarah weren't too happy but let her do it just to keep her in an after-school activity but took her out once Sarah's friend became a new gymnastics coach and put her in the class. At first, Jazmine was upset and would tear up every time they drove past the studio but she never gave up and would learn all different dances in her room. When she reached high school and became cheer captain, she turned the team out and added some much-needed flair to it with a lot of help from Royalty once she joined. Sadly, some of the people just couldn't keep up so she had to water it down sometimes but she would still keep the same high energy for the ones that could (her and Royalty mostly carried the whole team). So, she wanted to open her own dance studio and offer all different types of classes to all different types of people. Zumba, cheer, pole dancing, ballet, hip hop, tango. Anything and everything. Jazmine wanted to have a safe space that was also someone else's safe space, that's all she wishes could happen. Being a doctor would have been amazing because she loves people and helping them but dance was something she just loved more.

Now Royalty was a girl of many talents and being the youngest, she struggled a bit more on what she wanted to do with her life. Her three older friends have clear views about what they want to do and here she was with man troubles and over $3000 in her account from her ex sugar daddy. She felt a mess. She didn't know what to do with her life and she was the first one on the pole. How life would have been different if she just dropped out and left the girls in college but she needed to stop thinking about that. They never once blamed her for anything so she needed to stop doing it to herself. She had no idea if she wanted to get a small restaurant because she loved getting the chance to cook Jamaican food for people who have never tried it, her own clothing brand because she loved fashion or a hairdresser because she could do her own hair, did majority of the wigs Ming, Cindy, Jazmine and herself wore and has done other people's hair in the past.

It was all a big mess when it came down to what she really wanted to do. Being a doctor was just to have a secure job to give money back to her family at home but by the end of it, it didn't feel right to her, so she left and her friends were not far behind her. Royalty just wanted her parents to be proud of her. They weren't too happy about her being on the pole but got over it quickly once they realised this is what she would be doing now... as well as the increase of money they were getting. Jazmine, Cindy and Ming had to keep reassuring the girl that it didn't matter if she couldn't decide on what to do now as she had time to do it and perfect her craft, they all did. They didn't allow themselves to apply pressure on themselves before things even got started. All they knew was they were ready to work hard for what they wanted to achieve.

Jazmine sighed. "You're right. Let's get this over with so I know where I stand. I need to know if he loves me and wants to make it work or he's just going to leave me high and dry."

The girls nodded in understanding when Cindy suddenly gasped, making them all worried.

"Shit Jazzy, didn't Jayden move back to Chicago? That mean he here too and you gotta break it all the way off with him. Girl you is such a hoe."

The green-eyed girls mouth gaped open. "Oh fuck. How could I forget? No no no. I knew I shouldn't have slept with him." She rubbed her forehead frustratingly. "Do you think they have bumped into each other."

"I doubt it. They don't run in the same crowd." Ming shrugged.

"Yeah. Huey is a drug dealer and Jayden is a teacher, they run in different crowds. The chances of them walking up on each other is very slim." Royalty pointed out.

Jazmine took a deep breath. "Ok, I can live with that."

Oh, if only she knew.

"I think we should get going, it's been over 15 minutes already."

"Let's find Cotton first, we need to tell her where we're going." Royalty reminded them. The four girls walked over to their fellow stripper who was talking to one of Chyna's cousin. "Hey girl lemme steal you real quick."

Cotton smiled at the cousin before walking away with them. "You going now?"

"Yeah we have to, um, get going now." Jazmine answered nervously and she didn't understand why.

"You going to see your mans huh?" Cotton smirked.

Jazmine dramatically gasped. "Meee? Nooo."

"Girl you don't have to lie. Get outta here and get your mans, you too Diamond."

"Oop. She caught you two out." Ming laughed.

"Ok ok fine, yes we are going to see them. We'll see you at the club tomorrow." Jazmine hugged Cotton first and the rest followed suit. They said their last condolences to Chyna's parents before making their way to the car.

"You sure you ready for this?" Cindy asked.

Royalty scratched her head. "As ready as I'll ever be bitch."

* * *

The four girls stepped out the car and made their way towards the building.

"I feel like imma shit myself." Royalty said nervously.

"Ew that's nasty. Keep them ass cheeks closed unless Reezy is the causing it to clap." Cindy joked.

Royalty's gasped. "Yous a nasty bitch you know that."

"Don't worry about her. She's just horny because she's about to see Caesar." Ming laughed because she knew it was true.

"Girl why are you lying on a bitches name for?"

"Cin you know she's right." Jazmine giggled.

Cindy went and pressed the button to Caesar's home. "Bullies."

"Hypocrite." Royalty mumbled but Cindy still heard and punched her in the arm. "Bitch."

They heard the door buzz open from Caesar seeing them through the camera.

"Just call when you're ready to go." Ming told them as they stepped into the elevator, pressing two buttons. Her and Cindy got off first, leaving Royalty and Jazmine to go up one more floor to the last floor. As they stepped out, Jazmine pulled the girl into a hug.

"Let's hope this all goes well."

Royalty sighed. "I hope so too, I don't need the stress. Bye Jazzy."

Jazmine walked towards Huey's door and knocked at the same time Royalty happened to knock on Riley's. She stood their nervously and began to rub her hands together, she just hoped she didn't sweat. Suddenly, the door swung open and she was met with Huey standing in front of her in an all blue tracksuit and Jazmine had to admit he looked so good in the colour.

"Oh shit Huey!" Jazmine cursed as she grabbed her chest to feel her beating heart, she didn't expect him to open the door so quickly. Usually she could hear a person's footsteps as they came up to the door but she quickly remembered his name was Ghost for a reason. "Um hi Huey." She pulled herself together and softly smiled.

"Jazmine. It's good to see you again." He admitted.

'Ok, this is a good start.' Jazmine thought hopefully.

Huey stepped out the way and opened the door a little more, signalling for her to make her way inside. As she stepped in, she looked around the room as if it was the first time her being in there. "You do realise I haven't changed anything."

Jazmine swung around to see his smirking face looking at her, making her blush in embarrassment. "Uh, uh. I knew that, I was just... I got nothing." She took of her jacket and rested it on the couch before turning back to look at him.

Huey saw how high her shoulders were and knew how tense she was, he was too but he didn't want to show just how much he was. "Jazmine, its ok, I'm not going to hurt you relax."

Jazmine looked at him shocked. "I'm not scared of you hurting me Huey. It's just... been a long time since I've seen you. I didn't think I would ever see you again."

"I know how you feel." Huey nodded at her slowly.

Silence.

None of them did nothing, they just looked at each other intensely, wondering what was the other person next move or word was going to be. Huey decided to break it and slowly stepped forward to Jazmine, not moving his maroon eyes away from her emerald one. They stood toe to toe causing Jazmine to lift her head to look him directly into his eyes.

"Jazmine..."

"Huey..."

They repeated the same interaction from earlier but this time it held more weight to it. He slowly reached up and went to touch her soft cheeks but stopped as the image of her bruised cheek popped into his head. His heart broke all over again and he went to drop his hand but was shocked when Jazmine grabbed a hold of it and directed it back to her cheeks.

"I'm alive Huey. I'm no longer hurt." She said what he needed to hear. He needed to hear that because if he didn't, he didn't know if he could do the next move.

He reached down and connected his lips to hers much to her delight. Already, she moaned against his lips as they slowly moved in sync. There was so much baggage and anticipation to this kiss that no one would fully understand the power it held behind it. Jazmine threw her arms around his neck and pulled him even closer if that was even possible. She didn't get the chance to taste his lips as much before but this time around, she was going to savour every single one.

Huey could feel Jazmine on her tip toes trying to pull him down even more so decided to lift her and swing her legs around his waist. Now that they were at the same height, neither of them had to strain their necks.

"I missed you Huey." Jazmine whispered between his lips as she moved back to breath.

He licked his plumped lips. "I missed you too Jazmine."

Jazmine pulled him back into another kiss but this time it was more heated. Huey decided it was time to take them to the bedroom and had one eye barely open to help him walk to his room without causing her to bump against the walls. What felt like forever, Huey finally got to his room and lightly pressed Jazmine on the bed. As sat on his knees and swiftly removed his hoodie before attacking her neck with kisses and started to create hickey on her neck.

Jazmine bit her lip in satisfaction as she felt Huey's lips work on her neck. She already knew that he was skilled but feeling this again was crazy to her. She felt him starting to unbutton her shirt so she helped and threw it to the ground, making Huey smirk at her eagerness as he made his way back up to her lips. They began to make out again, with their bare stomachs placed against each other. Huey's large hand travelled down her torso and made its way into her underwear then into her, making her gasp against his lip at the sudden coldness. With no time to waste, he began to move his two fingers inside her.

"Shit."

Huey enjoyed how breathless Jazmine sounded underneath him so decided to slip in another finger and went to work.

Jazmine couldn't help but cross her eyes as Huey did what he needed to do. She felt herself starting to get hot already. She had no idea how he had such an effect on her.

Deciding to treat her even more, he slipped his fingers out, sat up and began to remove her skirt, tights and underwear, throwing it to somewhere in the room. Jazmine was left half naked and Huey smirked at the view before diving his head between her thighs, he didn't even give her time to say anything. He created a line of kisses from the middle of thigh and made his way up.

"Huey, I- oh. Shit." Jazmine had to cut herself off as she felt Huey's lips connect with her... other, lips. She didn't know what she did to deserve such a good treatment but she was happy to receive all the tongue and finger action that Huey was giving to her.

This was the most intimate they have been and it was worth the wait. Jazmine threw her legs on his shoulders and grabbed onto his large hair, making him smirk but he didn't stop once. Her other hand gripped the sheets to stop her from ripping out his hair from how good it felt. It was as if he was working magic on her. Huey felt Jazmine legs start to slight shake and knew she was close. He looked up from his position and locked eyes with her. Her mouth was gape open as soft whimpers was the only sound that left her lips. She wanted to tell him she was reaching her climax but she just couldn't. That was until Huey sent a cheeky wink at her which just threw her over the age.

"Imma - fuucck." Jazmine moaned out her climax which also found itself all over Huey's face and he licked it up without a moment's thought. Jazmine could feel her body tingling and had no idea if it was going to stop.

She watched him remove his face from between her legs and made his way back up to be face to face with her. She was breathing heavy as she just watched him seductively lick his lips, knowing all her juices was all over his face sent a shiver down her spine. He hesitated to kiss her again but she grabbed the back of his neck and used the strength she had left to pull him into a hard kiss. With their bodies pressed against each other, Jazmine could feel how hard Huey was between her legs so she pushed him over so she was on his back. She brushed his waistband when Huey's hand gently grabbed her hand, stopping her. Confused, Jazmine looked up at him.

"Not yet Jazmine. When we do, I want to make sure I fuck the shit outchu but not today." He told her gently as if what he said wasn't a complete turn on for her once again.

"But Huuueeeyy." Jazmine pouted.

Huey smirked and pulled her into a slow and passionate kiss. Sighing, she rolled off him and quickly found her underwear that was at the end of the bed and slipped it on. She crawled back up to Huey and swung a leg around his waist before cuddling into his side.

They sat there for 5 minutes in silence. The silence was needed. Having a comfortable silence between them was their thing, it was more of a Huey thing but Jazmine was fine with it. They knew they had a lot to talk about so this silence gave them time to pull together all their thoughts and emotions. They didn't know how hard it was going to be but it was too late to turn back now.

"How have you been Jazmine?" Huey once again was the first to break the silence.

She shrugged. "I've been good, I've seen better days than today." She began to trace his perfect abs when she stopped once her hand traced over two scars. Confused, she sat up a little to look at it better.

"This one is from the night you got taken." He pointed to the scar that looked the freshest, she didn't even need to ask because he knew she wanted to know about it so saved her the trouble of asking. "This is from the day Cairo was killed. Raven told me she told you guys about what happened."

"Yeah, I'm so sorry about him... she also told me that you dad and uncles killed Cairo's killer."

Huey shook his head slowly making Jazmine look at him confused. "Raven didn't know this but... it was me that killed Nick." He confessed. The colour drained from her face as she thought of a young Huey taking somebodies life. She knew he killed but he started so young, no child should go through that but then again, no child should be shot and see their friend get killed. Huey didn't have a regular childhood like Jazmine did. "I know you're thinking about how old I was then. I know. I snuck into the car when my dad and uncles went to get him then when the time came, I asked them if I could do it and they let me. That's when they knew that I was meant to be Ghost."

Jazmine didn't know what to say. People would call him a stone-cold killer and that she should run far from him but she couldn't bring herself to. She was stuck, for some reason, he was warm to her. She didn't get Ghost, she got Huey Freeman and that's the one she wanted to be with.

"That must have been hard for you."

Huey slightly shrugged. "I guess in the beginning but I eventually got myself to not drain myself with the thought."

"I guess that's good... is that the only scar you have?"

Huey smirked. "You really think I only have two?"

Jazmine crossed her arms, making her chest push out more and the necklace Huey got her to fall between her breast. Huey had to stop himself from licking his lips as they were having a serious conversation here. "Well excuse me for asking. Gosh."

"No it's not the only one." He rolled his eyes, making her nudge him. "I got stabbed here." Huey slightly turned on his side to show the scar going diagonally from his spine and a few inches going towards his kidney. "Got stabbed when I was 19. Riley and I was on our way home when we got jumped. He got stabbed in the stomach and I got stabbed in the back. I got lucky because they missed my spine."

Jazmine's eyes grew wide. "What? And Riley was only what, 17?"

"Yeah. It was just before I took over the gang too. Riley had to fight but he pulled through but when I tell you he was showing countless girls just to get them tripping over him."

"That sounds like Riley alright." Jazmine giggled a little before getting serious again. "You got anymore?"

Huey shook his head. "Not really. The rest have all healed so you can't even see it. Oh, I have a cut on my foot from when Riley tried to hide a glass cup he broke but he didn't do a good job of it. I was 6."

Jazmine gasped softly. "And he didn't cut himself?"

"Oh no he did. He has a scar from when he tried to pick it up."

Jazmine shook her head. "You two are something else." She started to look over his body again and he just watched her. She wanted to get to know Huey more and she wanted to start on the outside. "Tell me about your tattoos."

Huey raised an eyebrow, wondering why she was so interested in it. No one besides his parents have ever asked about his tattoos. "These two are self-explanatory." He pointed to the Panther sitting on his left peck and lifted his left wrist to show the tattoo dedicated to Cairo. "Hiro, Riley, Caesar, Raven and Raven's sister Robyn, all have it somewhere on our bodies. We all got it together as a way to remember him."

"That's so sweet..."

"I guess." Huey sighed before carrying on. He showed her his sleeve that had a very detailed compass surrounded by a rose. "I just saw this and liked it." On the right side of his body was the Eye of Horus which had an Ankh going through this. "The Eye of Horus means health, knowledge, power and protection. You could guess it works. I'm healthy, I knew things beyond my years, I am a leader of a whole gang and I have not died." Huey shrugged and Jazmine was confused at how light hearted he could be about that but she guessed he was used to it since he grew up in the life he was in now. "Then the Ankh means life which ties in with the eye that is why I got them to go together." Huey explained to her. "And that's it. I might get more later on in life if I think of something I like... what about yours?"

Jazmine began to point at her different tattoos. "In Woodcrest, me and the girls had this moment and decided to get four matching tattoos. Ming picked this which says 'My Sisters Keeper', Cindy picked out the rose on my hand, Royalty did the hearts and I choose the infinity one." She then lifted her bra to show him the small Pisces sign that was on her side. "My star sign." She lifted her leg to show the tattoo that was on her hip and thigh. "It says 'Everything will be ok in the end. If it is not okay, it's not the end'. It's from Lion King of course." Hearing this made Huey roll his eyes while she just giggled. "Hey don't judge. I love that film but anyway that's it I guess." She shrugged. Jazmine reached forward and grabbed Huey's hand and began to trace random patterns on it.

"How was Woodcrest? Did you see your parents?"

Jazmine paused for a second but continued what she was doing to act like she wasn't fazed. 'I guess we getting more serious.'

She cleared her throat but didn't look up at Huey. She was going to have to tell him about Jayden. "Woodcrest was... something to say the least. My two old friends, Ed and Rummy just so happen to own a strip club that we joined. They're a couple years older than us and even then, we were barely at the club but they still gave us money every now and then when we didn't work. I think they would get along with Riley just fine." Jazmine laughed to herself as she thought to how the men's crazy personalities would get them into trouble but knew they would like the thrill of it. Her smile dropped when she knew she had to get to the top she was dreading. "And I may or may not have slept in Jayden multiple times for comfort."

Huey sat up with wide eyes as he heard what Jazmine said. She had her hands covering her eyes and she shrunk back in the bed, scared of Huey's reaction.

He scratched his head. "I guess he wasn't lying."

Jazmine's hands instantly fell into her lap. "Nigga say what?"

"I had to pick up Coco and Tay from school and I walked into him. He mentioned you two meeting up again and gloated... then you just so happened to send him a picture about how you were glad to not have a bruise anymore."

She gasped, that was not what she expected to hear. "Oh shit Huey, I am so sorry. I didn't know he would do something like that-"

"Jazmine." Huey cut her off. She looked nervous and Huey didn't really understand why. "It's fine... I slept with someone when you left too."

"But that's not the- wait you did?" Huey nodded. "Ok forget about that but this is different. He gloated to your face and that's not acceptable. That's some dumb nigga shit and I will let him know that. He doesn't get to treat me like some prize even though I know I fucked up by going back to him. I will have to go and tell him we are completely finished." Jazmine was so into being mad at Jayden that she didn't see Huey's shocked face at her effortless cussing. "Can't believe this shit. I'm sorry, I will make sure it won't happen again."

"Don't worry Jazmine. It's fine. He's lucky we were on school grounds because I would've stomped his ass out."

"Please. I can handle him myself, I just need to let go of the past and move on with my life." Jazmine breathed out, trying to calm herself down.

"What you planning to do now?" Huey asked. He wanted to know where he stood in her life as they started to approach the more important part of the conversation.

"I want to open up my own dance studio." Jazmine admitted to him.

Huey raised an eyebrow. "You do?"

She nodded. "Uhm. I've loved to dance since I was a little girl. I want to have my own dance studio for other people to learn and to just dance like I did for the short time I got. I'm going to use the money I got from dancing and savings to start it up. Hopefully one day, I could create a dance team and travel across the country and world with them. I guess it was always a dream of mine to dance even if I did like the idea of being a doctor in the beginning." Jazmine said hopefully.

Huey smirked. "And I know you can make it happen."

"Yeah... but my dream would be even better with you by my side." Jazmine spoke softly. She was playing with Huey's hand and looking down at it nervously, scared of what his reaction would be. The idea of being rejected was painful so she didn't want to see his face when he did. She just wanted to keep her head down and when she got rejected, she could just shimmy out of the door.

"Jazmine..." Huey sighed.

"If you don't want to its fine. I'm sure we can be friends or something since our friends are together, we will be seeing each other a few times. I don't want it to be awkward between us if we're not together-"

Jazmine was cut off by Huey's lips that forced her to stop talking. As he pulled away, he had her lips between his teeth, teasing her. "You know you need to stop being so nervous sometimes." He was about to let a smirk rest on his face but decided against it, it was time to be serious. He looked her deep in the eyes. "Jazmine. Ever since I met you, I had a feeling you were unlike any other woman I have ever come across. You're strong, beautiful, resilient, everything. I wanted to keep you away from me but you always managed to find your way back but when you got... kidnapped, I didn't know what to do with myself. I was going crazy. As soon as I woke up, I jumped out the bed and ran straight to the warehouse to track Raven to get you back. I thought I was going to fucking die if anything happened to you because that would have been on me. Even when I went to talk to my parents, I got pissed which earned me a big ass slap across my face to put me back in my place. Never in my life have I ever raised my voice at them the way I did which is when they realised how much I had feelings for you... and I did too but I don't want to hurt you like I did the last time. I think you can do so much better than me. A man that can be by your side everyday with no threat of death looming on their back. I was unable to protect you the way my father protected my mother in all these years. Not once has my mom ever been kidnapped and my parents have been together for over 26 years. I knew you in less time and you've already been hurt in ways I have to stop myself from thinking about again because if not, I will go on a crazy fucking rampage and that's not good for my people. I don't want you to be dragged down by me. I want you to find a man who will protect you, love you, marry you and give you the children I know you want."

By the end of Huey's little speech, Jazmine had tears running down her face. She has never heard Huey talk to her like that and it was refreshing to hear even though he was trying to get away from her.

"But that's the thing Huey, I already found him." Huey raised an eyebrow at her, making her laugh through the tears. "It's you Huey, don't you see! I would have never come back if I felt as if I didn't want to spend the rest of my life with you. I know you and I know you can protect anyone, what happened wasn't your fault. You got shot twice, you couldn't come after us straight away but even when you did, you had a fresh wound and not once did you let that stop you from getting us. That's what I count as a real man. One that fights for who he loves and doesn't give in easily. You have to remember you're not just Ghost, you're Huey fucking Freeman and that name goes a long way too. I've forgiven you Huey, I told you that the day I left. My parents may think I'm crazy and I know I am but I am ready to fall in love with my killer, drug dealing, gang leader man and have some gangster ass kids."

Huey was shocked to say the least. Hearing Jazmine say all of that reassured him that if he did get into a relationship with her, it will be the best decision he would make it a long time but the fear and guilt that sat in his stomach was making him sick and she saw this.

Jazmine leaned forward on her knees and grabbed his face, making sure their eyes were locked together. "Stop other thinking this Huey. I want you just as much as you want me. I want us to work. I want to show my parents that I am more than just the daughter that does dumb shit. I need you Huey, no one else."

"Ar- are you sure Jazmine?" He stuttered, by now, his mouth and brain were no longer connected and he had no idea what he saw saying.

Rolling her eyes, she crashed her lips against his, engaging in a long, feverish kiss. "Does that answer your question?"

Huey smirked, confidence Jazmine was something he always liked. "I don't know, I think I need more convincing."

"Don't have to tell me twice." Jazmine jumped in his lap, giggling her head off and locked lips with Huey, enjoying every moment. "So does that mean I'm your girl now?"

"You were always my girl Jazmine."

"Hm, I like the sound of that."

After a 5 minute make out session, Huey pulled away and sighed.

"What's wrong?" Jazmine asked confused.

"I just... it's crazy how much has changed in these last few months and how much is going to change as the months go by. I will have you but I always got to make sure I stay on top of the gang to make sure they don't catch me slipping again because we all know what happened last time." Huey hated to admit.

"I know you will be able to do it, even if I have to remind your ass to get back to work." Jazmine laughed. "Plus, I'm technically going to be helping you by being at the club and selling you stuff."

Huey raised an eyebrow at her. "How you know that?"

"Cotton told me of course. Had to get us updated on everything that was happening and I think it's a good idea. Extra cash flowing through the club."

"Well once you get your business up and running, you won't have to worry about that anymore." Huey reminded her.

Jazmine sighed. "Yeah I know, it's going to be crazy. I'm going to have pole dancing classes though and I know Royalty will be more than happy to help out with some classes too or even do some herself. She loves to dance just as much as me."

"That's good and if you need anything, I'm here to help you. I want to see you become successful." He reached onto his bed side table and placed a roll of cash in Jazmine's hand who looked at it with wide eyes.

"Woah, that was not what I expect buuuuttt, I want to do this with my own money. I got a couple thousand that I can use to buy property and to start designing inside. I will still work some nights at the club just to get my last few scrapes of working there but overall, I'm good. Remember, I have two lawyer parents that had set up money for me before I came out the womb." She told him as she placed the cash back where it was.

"Privilege and bouji. You are far out of your element." Huey snorted, making her slap his bare chest.

"I'm sorry if I like some adventure in my life."

"Well with me, that's all you're going to get."

Jazmine smirked. "I think I can handle it." She went to scratch her neck and remembered the necklace. "You know I have never taken this off since you put it on me."

Huey raised an eyebrow. "Even when you were with you know who?"

"Yes even with him." She rolled her eyes. "It was the only thing you have given me so I wanted to keep it close."

"Well I have to tell you something about it." Jazmine looked at him confused but let him continue. "I asked one of my guys to put a tracker in it but I never looked at where you went. Riley just happened to tell me where you were by insta-stalker Royalty. I only checked the location once which was yesterday to just confirm that the people in the house was you, since I kept watch of it while you were gone." Huey confessed.

"Aww that's so sweet."

"It is?"

Jazmine nodded. "Yeah, you just wanted to make sure I was safe like how you are with Raven because she told us about the one she has implanted in her neck which was how you found us. I'm guessing you have one too."

"Yeah, right here." Huey showed her.

"It's cute that you still wanted to look out for me even after I left."

"Well I knew you was safe so I didn't feel as if I was stalking you."

"And now I am right back in your arms, my new favourite location." Jazmine grinned before moving to lie down on Huey's chest, making their bare stomachs rest on each other. "I could get used to this."

Huey smirked. "I could too."

She sighed. As she went to close her eyes, she remembered her friends. "Ming and Cindy are definitely fucking Hiro and Caesar right now, they were fixing themselves up before they got here. I wonder if Royalty and Riley are as relaxed as we are."

"Trust me, if I think what he's telling her, she would be far from relaxed."

Jazmine looked at him confused so Huey went on to explain what she had missed the past few months and she was in for some stories.

* * *

Royalty knocked on the door the same time Jazmine did and waited.

She turned slightly and saw Jazmine was already making her way inside while she could hear a lot of rushed shuffling behind the door she stood in front. She guested he was trying to clean up or something. A few seconds later, an out of breath Riley swung open the door.

"Sup Royalty... come in." He opened the door wider to let the dancer step in so she did. "Lemme take your coat." He offered.

"Thank you." She told him. He has never been so courteous before so this was surprising to see. "How you been?"

Riley shrugged. "A nigga getting through. You?"

Royalty shrugged. "A bitch is getting through."

Riley let a small smile rest on his face. "I missed your sexy ass."

"I missed you too Reezy. Been a minute since we've last talked huh."

"I know that's right. Shit got crazy here in the streets."

"Yeah, me and the girls have been keeping up with the news. They tried to make you look like the bad guys when it was really the other motherfuckers." Royalty cursed.

Riley crossed his arm as he walked towards the kitchen area, Royalty following behind him. "Girl you know we be doing some dangerous shit too. That shit is also on us."

"But you're not the one killing people's sons, daughters, mothers, fathers with that bomboclaut drug dem a put pon di street dem."

He knew what she was saying was serious but he didn't think anyone understood the degree of how much he missed hearing that accent. It made him feel warm but also a little turned on but that was going to have to be put on hold.

"I would say we're just as bad. We sell drugs too."

Royalty raised an eyebrow at him. "You sell weed not cocaine. Do I have to remind you that I come from the beautiful island of Jamaica which is also known as the country of ganga smoking people? I have been around weed since I was little and every person I know today is fine. Cocaine managed to kill people in such a short time, including our friend Chyna whose funeral we just left."

"I guess you got me there." Riley scratched the back of his cornrowed hair, making her look up at it.

"I should redo your hair, it's starting to fizz." Royalty stepped forward to touch his hair. As she reached up, Riley was engulfed by her sweet smell which made his body warm up. It has been so long since he had felt her touch that it was something he longed for. In one swift move, Riley pulled her waist forward and held her in a hug. At first, she was caught off guard but eventually melted into his arms.

"I don't remember you giving such good hugs." Royalty mumbled in his hard chest. Her eyes were even closed.

Riley rested his head on her head, taking in all the different hair products in her hair. "How you forget Reezy give them good cuddles?"

"Maybe because it's been a while since I've been hugged like this... no one did in Woodcrest. When I went back to Jamaica I did. I needed to go back home for a while."

"You going to take me there one day?"

Royalty lifted her head to look at him and laughed. "Yeah sure but we're staying in a hotel because I know your ass can't handle my life."

Riley smacked his lips. "You don't see my life? I can handle whatever you throw at me."

"Sure you can baby... sure you can."

Baby. The word instantly made Riley's smile drop and Royalty noticed it. He had to tell her, she deserved to know. If they were going to work on having a relationship, he needed to open and she had to know there was a possibility she was going to become a step mother.

"What's wrong?" She asked concerningly.

"I gotta tell you something and I don't think you're going to like it." He started off.

She slowly detached herself from him and they both felt a shiver run through their bodies from the lack of body heat.

"What do you have to tell me Riley?" She had to say it but she didn't want to.

He took a deep breath, knowing this whole conversation was about to go left.

"As you know, my birthday just past and I went out for it." He started out. She nodded slowly in understanding but her heart was attacking her rib cage from how scared she was. Riley never sounded so serious before. "Well, I brought some girls back and we... had sex. Now, one of the girls is saying she's pregnant and she thinks I'm the father. I'm waiting on the DNA test to come back to see if it's true or not." Riley confessed. His chest felt tight just saying those words but it hurt even more when he looked at the woman standing in front of him.

She was mute. Frozen. Nothing. She barely blinked. It made him uneasy. Just like how Royalty has never heard him sound so serious, he has never seen her so still. All of this was about to become crazy.

"Royalty... say something." He looked at her desperately. When he said that, he saw the light flicker back into her face as if she finally registered what he said.

"Weh ya wah mi fi seh? You fuck gyal when mi did garn and now she pregnant. You nah understand whatta condom is? You fi get how fi put it pon ya cocky? Now what? Mi a step mudda because you breed one dutty gyal?" She couldn't stop herself from saying. Riley knew she was upset because she was speaking in full patois and it was coming at him in rapid fire.

"Look, baby, I didn't know if or when you were going to come back so I did what I do best, I fuck around but this time it came to kick a nigga in his ass. I didn't mean for any of this to happen and I regret this shit so much. I was feeling lonely and I have never felt like that before and I know that's no excuse. I wasn't thinking straight. I should have been man enough and taken care of myself but I didn't."

Royalty was shocked internally that he managed to understand most of what she was saying but had no time to dwell on it.

"Riley. Ya 'ave pickney pon di way, mi neva want baby mama drama because of next man."

"I know I know. No girl would want that but I need you to see that I'm sorry that all this happened. I wish you didn't have to come back to more of my bullshit mess but I can't help it. Everywhere I step, I leave trouble."

Royalty sighed and rubbed her forehead before letting her hands drop to her sides. "Mi wah fi be wid you but mi need fi know if you want dis too."

Riley walked forward and grabbed a hold of her hands, not taking his eyes off hers.

"Baby this is all I want. I want you. No other girl. Only you and I'm serious... I never thought I would say this before but I see myself with you and only you. I see you being my wife and walking down the aisle in one of them white dresses crying as you think if you should back out or not. Everyone thinking you're crazy for marrying a nigga like me. I see you giving birth to my sons who are about to raise hell everywhere running around like their father and sweet daughters with a spicy attitude like their mother which is undefeated. You're the only one I want Royalty and this time around, I will make sure it's only you." Riley said with every word dripping with sincerity that no one has ever heard before.

Royalty started to feel emotional. Like all the other girls, they have never been talked to the way these gang members have talked to them. Their business may be dirty but they had the biggest hearts anyone has ever seen. It was unreal to them. They were all between the ages of 23 and 26 and were ready to start getting their lives on track. They were thinking long term, marriage and kids. They had no time to mess about and in their line of work, it was uncertain if they would survive every time they walked out the door so having a family was to also show that they did more than just cause pain. They had their own extension of their family to grow from them.

She removed one hand from his and rubbed her head. "I... Riley... why you gotta make shit so hard?"

He shrugged. "I've been trouble since the day I was born but I promise I will do everything to make it up to you."

Royalty could see the desperation and the fear in his eyes, he was scared to lose her. She knew this was his first serious relationship and to be fair, it was hers too. They were new to all this and the youngest out of their group of friends. They still had a lot to figure out and space to grow.

"I can't believe I have to go through some dumb shit like this." She shook her head and sighed. "We fucked within the first few days of knowing each other and never expected to catch feelings as hard as we did. Now look at our dumb asses getting all emotional and shit."

Riley smirked. "You saying it like you didn't enjoy the dick."

"I wasn't the only one." She deadpanned, making the smirk drop. "I got your ass there didn't I." She let out a short laugh but decided to finally reply to him pouring his heart out. "Ah shit. The ting crazy my yute. I do want to work this out Riley. For us to have a proper relationship, maybe take it slow. We're young, we got so much to look to. I'm trying to get my shit together so let's work on getting our shit together. With your possible baby situation... we will deal with that. I'm still conflicted but I want you and I guess you and that could-be-your-baby come together. I love kids. Didn't expect my first 'child' to be a step child but it is what it is. I just want you to know that I want some babies too just so you know."

Riley smiled when he saw her smile. "I hear you girl. I promise to take care of everything and you. I never want you to be hurt and I dare a nigga to lay his fucking hands on you and see if I won't cut their fucking hands off."

"Trust me when I say I am not going to be caught slipping again."

"You know how to use a gun?" He questioned. At first, she was confused but then understood where he was going with it.

"I know a little bit about it."

He nodded his head, thinking. "Ite. I know gay ass nigga Huey will want y'all to know what the fuck to do with a gun. I will get you a piece for you to hold."

"I ain't too big on guns..." She admitted.

"That's cool. I can get you a taser or one of them girlie shits." Riley teased, earning him a punch in the arm. "Ow! Damn girl your ass got stronger."

"But your ass stayed being crazy."

"My ass is only crazy for you, bring your ass over here." Riley pulled on Royalty's arm to bring her closer, making her shriek and giggle with excitement.

"Reezy!"

They all knew they still had a lot to discuss because their lives are never easy. There were so many layers they had to unpeel and they had just about ripped off the first one. It would be irresponsible of them to just think everything was going to be fine, they just had to find ways to work and it was going to be interesting to see how it was going to work.

All they knew was Chicago needed to prepare themselves because this group of people was about to cause some racket up in this bitch.

* * *

**Its about time I managed to put out this chapter out. You would think being at home everyday would give me enough time to write but I remembered the amount of work I had to do at the same time, which I still haven't finished but I finished this. **

**Shout out to Chel29 for the constant support on here and on Wattpad. I love it. Thank you so much.**

**Paige1292: Welcome to my crazy story.**

**Honesty: Trust me when I say they have just touched the surface of the conversations they need to have, they only touched on it a little bit. Jayden is acting a bit crazy now and I love Raven's character now too, I am glad of the direction I have turned her in. Thank you for the birthday wish and I look forward to your next review.**

**Guest: I know how you feel. Her parents are right but we love a bit of rebellious children sometimes.**

**Don't forget to drop your reviews about what you think about their discussion & what you think will happen next.**

**I hope everyone is staying safe during these times, we going to get through it.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	34. Chapter 34: More Than What We Asked For

Jazmine stirred in the bed as she began to wake up. She flung her hand outwards and was met with the cold mattress. At first, it was comforting until she remembered that she was supposed to hit something. She groaned and slowly sat up in the bed and looked around the room.

"Where you going?"

Huey paused his movement which was him still shirtless with one leg in his sweats. The room was dark but he guessed she could see his silhouette. He was shocked to see her awake as she was peacefully sleeping just a second ago.

"You can turn on the light." She told him and waited for him to do so. It took her a few seconds to adjust her eyesight but once she did, she could clearly see that he was getting ready for something. "Yeah so back to my question. Where is your fine ass going?"

"I got some business to handle." He simply told her.

Jazmine looked at him confused before reaching to check the time on her phone. "At... 3:38?"

Huey smirked. "You know I do most of my business at night. I got some things to sort out and I'll be back later."

"Ok, I will wait for you to come back."

Huey raised an eyebrow at her and walked closer. "Jazmine. I'm going to come back at all times of morning, you can not stay awake. You had a long day yesterday, you don't need to stay up and wait."

"But I want to make sure you make it back alright." Jazmine pouted and reached out her arms. Huey sat on the edge of the bed so Jazmine sat on her knees and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"You don't need to worry, I'll be fine. Hiro, Caesar, Riley and the twins are coming too." Huey told her.

That's when she remembered her special little friend. "How could I forget, how's Coco? I missed that smart little girl."

Huey had forgot to mention about his younger cousin. He remembered the day they all spent together and how much fun the two girls were having with one another. Coco had really taken a liking to Jazmine and he didn't blame her for doing so. "I mean besides her beating up yet another child with Tay, I guess she's doing good."

"I'm guessing that's why you ran into the person we do not bring up." Huey nodded. "Well if Dante is going, doesn't he need a babysitter? I mean, I can stay with her for the night." Jazmine suggested but Huey shook his head.

"She's been stay with Anthony since you left. Dante wanted to keep her safe and he wanted someone to be there with her 24/7."

Jazmine smiled dropped. No child should have to be away from their parents for so long, she wondered how Coco was copying with the sudden change. "That's so sad. I hope he gets to spend more time with her soon, she must have been upset about it."

"I heard she was upset for the first few days but she's better now. He just makes sure he sees her as much as possible. Tony was the best person to have her."

"I guess that's good..." Jazmine trailed off. Before she could say anything else, Huey's phone rang but it was a different one that she usually saw him with.

"Yeah." He answered. Jazmine watched how his voice instantly screwed up in concentration and wondered what was being said on the other side of the phone. "Good. Meet me there, I'm leaving now." Without a bye, he hung up the phone and looked at the woman who had her arms still wrapped around his neck.

Jazmine sighed and sat back in the bed. "I see you have to go now... be safe."

Huey raised an eyebrow at her. "What? No kiss?"

"Oh is that what you were waiting for?" Jazmine giggled when she noticed Huey didn't make any moves to leave.

"Of course." He told her. "So?"

Giggling, Jazmine leaned forward once again and gave him a deep kiss which he happily accepted. "I could get used to this. Giving you sweet kisses before you run off into the night like you're Batman."

"Batman? Really? I'm the nigga Batman be after."

"Well compared to that... person, you are defiantly a Batman." Jazmine shivered.

Huey saw how her demeanour changed at the mention of Vladimir and the guilt at the pit of his stomach began swimming again. He leaned forward and gave Jazmine a soft kiss on the side of her lips. "Hey, don't worry about him. I'll handle him. You just keep your pretty ass in this bed until I come back."

Jazmine began to blush as his Chicagoan accent kissed her eardrums. Whenever he would flirt, it just did something to her, she didn't understand what it was but she wanted to keep feeling it.

"Ok." She replied back giddily as that was all she could say back.

Huey jumped up and final put on his jumper and sneakers. Jazmine watched him collected the famous bandana and put it around his neck, she could see the design poking out and remembered he was the real deal.

"Bye Huey." Jazmine waved.

"Bye Jazmine."

She watched her new man walk out the room and then heard the door shut. She sighed and sunk into the bed. She didn't expect to be alone on their first night together but she guessed she had to get used to him going out in the middle of the night to handle business. Jazmine decided to see if the other girls were awake so grabbed her phone and went into their group chat.

_Jazmine: You hoes awake?_

_Royalty: Yes bitch._

_Cindy: Right here_

_Ming: Yup. Hiro just left._

_Cindy: Same with Caes_

_Royalty: Riley too._

_Jazmine: Yeah, Huey's ass tried to sneak out but I woke up._

_Ming: Well by the sounds of everything, you two had a good conversation._

_Cindy: Y'all together now? Spill the tea bitches!_

_Royalty: Jazzy first because biittcccchhh! I got the tea!_

_Jazmine: Lmao. Alright. Well as soon as I stepped in the crib, we got a little heated but we didn't have sex. Just a little kissy kissy or whatever. Then we just talked about what we both wanted. He told me that he didn't want to hurt me and how being with him wasn't the best option even though he wanted me so bad._

_Ming: Cute, cute._

_Royalty: And theeennn?!_

_Jazmine: And I told his fine ass that I wanted him and only him. I know what happened to us was a slip up and it wouldn't happen again. We just needed to trust each other. Oh and that's not even the best part!_

_Cindy: Bitch wtf! Tell us then. Fuck._

_Jazmine: Ok, ok, relax... I told him I slept with Jayden..._

_Royalty: And I oop-_

_Ming: Loooooooool_

_Cindy: You is brave than a mf... what he say?_

_Jazmine: You guys are crazy lmao. He was cool about it, you bitches jinxed me tho! You said they wouldn't run into each other but they did. Huey had to pick up his cousins because they got in trouble and they bumped into each other at the school._

_Cindy: Well ain't that some shit._

_Jazmine: I know right! But he was pretty chill about it... and he told me he slept with someone when we left too._

_Ming: That's cold._

_Royalty: You is a hypocrite loool! You tried it bitch._

_Ming: Hush up child._

_Royalty: Ok, have this energy when I see you. Anyway, what else?_

_Jazmine: Umm, oh yeah, there was a tracker in my necklace the whole time but he never looked at the location. Crazy right? What about you and Riley, Royalty?_

_Cindy: …bitch how tf you just gonna speed right past that shit?_

_Ming: Like you didn't say you have a whole ass tracker in that simple ass necklace._

_Royalty: And I oop..._

_Jazmine: I mean at least he told me now. It's better than him putting it in my neck while I was sleeping._

_Royalty: Wait, now that you mentioned it... do you think we're all going to get one?_

_Ming: Maybe._

_Cindy: We'll see if we're around long enough._

_Jazmine: Bitch you already know we're here to stay. We already spoke it into existence. So, I got a man, Ming got a man, Cin got a man. The question is, does Royalty have a man?_

_Royalty: No._

_Cindy: Bitch why not?_

_Ming: But you still at his place?_

_Jazmine: Oh yeah... Huey told me..._

_Ming: I wanna know now!_

_Cindy: Spilllll!_

_Royalty: Cha... this boy done got girl a pregnant. He waiting on the DNA test tho._

_Cindy: Did you beat him up? I know you like beating up guys._

_Royalty: Stfu... I wanted to but I'm trying to hold back from fucking a nigga up._

_Ming: So what does that mean for you two?_

_Royalty: I guess we just gonna take it slow for now. I say that but we probably going to be together next week._

_Cindy: So when you find out if you a step mama or nah?_

_Jazmine: Really Cindy?_

_Cindy: What? Is a bitch wrong?_

_Ming: Nahh._

_Cindy: See._

_Jazmine: I can't deal with you two lool. Continue Roy Roy._

_Royalty: Fingers cross, by next week, I just hope this bitch is not crazy. Wait, lemme not say bitch because I haven't met her yet... but she just seems like a bitch._

_Cindy: Look at you trying to be nice and shit. Co-parenting already started!_

_Royalty: Ya bright..._

_Jazmine: Well at least you're being mature about it, some girls would have been acting crazy._

_Royalty: I have more class than them other hoes but that's about it for my drama._

_Ming: Y'all fuck?_

_Royalty: Nah. That's on pause for now. He gotta really earn this pussy._

_Cindy: Oh so now you have self control?_

_Royalty: Not everyone is trying to be a hoe like you Cynthia._

_Cindy: Hey, don't act like I won't come upstairs and fuck you up!_

_Royalty: Come nah man._

_Ming: If you hoes don't chill out, its 4am._

_Jazmine: Loool you two are so childish._

Jazmine giggled as she read over the crazy text messages from her friends and decided to just FaceTime the girls. Within seconds, they all called.

"Ew I have to see Cindy's ugly ass face." Royalty faked gagged.

"Ew I can smell Royalty's stank breath through my phone." Cindy faked gagged.

"I am so tired of you hoes already..." Ming sighed.

Jazmine nodded. "I low key regret this."

All she knew was, this was about to be a long night.

* * *

Huey walked out his house and made sure it was locked up. No one ever entered their building without them knowing but he just wanted to make sure. Maybe he should tell two of his peoples to house sit while he's gone... yeah that could work. He got into the elevator and pressed the bottom for the ground floor. That's when he felt the elevator stop and the doors open, it shocked him to see who was standing there.

"Raven?"

She grinned at him and stepped into the evaluator and stood next to Huey.

"Sup Huey."

"What are you doing here? Where's Cairo?" He looked her up and down when he didn't see a car seat in her hand. He noted that she had an all-black outfit on as if she was about to go to the warehouse... she isn't, is she?

"Aww look at you all concerned for baby Cairo." She teased. They finally got the bottom floor and stepped out but Huey stopped, waiting for an answer from Raven. "He's staying with my parents for a few days. I'm using this time to fully dive into work. Get both clubs sorted and the gang stuff."

Huey raised an eyebrow. "But your only concern now is the clubs. I don't want you to get hurt, it's too dangerous."

"I laugh in the face of danger." Raven said dramatically before giggling to herself. Huey's unamused face made it even funnier but she continued to tell him her plan. "Look, its nothing we haven't done before. Yes I agree I need to be out the gang side of business more but it's been months Huey. I miss the adrenaline rush whenever we rolled up on motherfuckers and kicked their shit in. Plus, I need to find that bitch Natasha and kick her shit in for what she did to us and granddad. I'm glad we killed her fucking sister but damn I wish it was her."

Huey shook his head. He knew how stubborn she could be so there was no point trying to talk her out of it. She would do what she wanted to do, he just had to watch her.

"Well, don't slow us down." Huey smirked before walking outside. He heard her gasp, run up behind him and punch him in the shoulder.

"Don't get smart with me nigga."

"Whatever, come on."

They walked towards the garage and saw the boys were chatting as they stood around the number of cars.

"You know, I never realised how much cars we have. We have 9 cars just sitting in here and most the time I feel like we carpool." Caesar pointed out.

Huey shrugged. "I was thinking about giving away one anyway."

"Nah I'm keeping my cars." Riley grinned as he and his brother were the only one that owned two cars.

"I still don't trust your driving." Demetrius laughed.

"Yous just a bitch that's why. My driving isn't for punk bitches like you."

"Ay nigga I'm just saying."

"If you guys are done slinging dick, let's get a moving." Raven stepped in.

Riley screwed his face at her. "Gabriella what is your ass doing here anyway?" No one understood Riley's love to call females a celebrity he believes they looked like. Gabriella Union was for Raven and he was ready to start calling his friends girlfriends names too. He has mentioned before that Jazmine reminded him of Mariah Carey.

"I'm here to do some work unlike you. Get in a fucking car already."

Huey shook his head as the two started bickering. He still wondered how they have both made it this far in their life without killing each other, after all these 24 years of his life.

Raven jumped in the passenger seat with Huey driving, Hiro and Caesar went together while the twins and Riley got in another car.

"Sooo, I saw the extra car in the garage. Is it right for me to guess it was Jazmine?" Raven questioned after a few minutes of silence.

Huey peered over to her before focusing on the dark roads ahead. The roads were clear so it wouldn't take them long to get where they needed.

"Maybe." Was all his reply.

"Hm, I know I'm right. Did you tell her about Erica?"

Huey raised an eyebrow. "How the fuck do you know th-"

"I saw your dumb ass sneaking out her house when I was driving passed one day. Dumb nigga." She shook her head and laughed. "You can proceed."

"If you must know... I did and she took it better than I thought. She even skipped right past it."

"Serious?" Huey nodded. "Damn you lucky. I would have swung on your ass."

"Not everyone is as violent as you Raven."

"Haha so funny... bitch." She mumbled the last word before turning back to him. "What else happened? Just tell me, I can't be asked to ask every single, little question. That's too long."

Huey sighed and gave in. "We just talked about having a relationship. I told her this shit doesn't come easy, it's dangerous and I don't want her to get hurt but she seems to want me as much as I want her." He didn't even realise what he said at the end at first but once he did, he felt his body begin to heat up in embarrassment.

"Aww that's so cute. You together I'm guessing?" Huey nodded, causing Raven to let a grin break on her face. "Who would have thought Huey would enter another serious relationship? First since you were 17. Even then, I have never seen you trip over yourself the way you have with her, not even with me... it's cute. I'm happy for you Huey, seriously."

"Thanks, I guess."

Raven rolled her eyes at his lack of enthusiasm. "I'm serious Hu. You're taking your life more seriously and thinking about the future. You know, marriage and kids."

"Yeah and you've already beaten me to it." Huey smirked as he took a quick glance at his friend before turning back to the road, he knew they were close.

"Crazy right! Who would've thought I would be a single mother before my 26th Birthday? I started this whole life thing backwards... maybe I should go to a male strip club to find my husband, it worked for you lot."

Huey rolled his eyes as Raven began to giggle to herself. He pulled up to the warehouse and turned off his car. "You do what you gotta do, just don't fuck up like I did."

Raven could see the seriousness in his eyes, more than usual. She knew the past few months fucked with him to the point you could physically see the stress on him but only to those that really knew him. She was glad to see the humanity in him and Jazmine seemed to be the main source he would get it from. If that was correct, she was happy to accept Jazmine and the rest of the girls into their crazy lives. Thinking about it, maybe Raven should talk to the girls, they needed a break down of at least an ounce of their lives.

"I hear you Huey, and I promise to look out for your girls. It's the least I could do for giving them shit the first time we met."

"You don't hav-"

"But I'm going to. They need a female perspective when it comes to this street thing. There's no other woman on the higher level but me, I should be the one to break shit down for them. I will try not to scare them away but you know we live some scary fucking lives."

Huey thought about it for a second. He was planning on giving them self-defence lessons and some type of protection but maybe Raven would be the best fit to help them. She has been in this life just as long as he has, she knew the ins and outs better than anyone else around. She was smart and strong. He also didn't mind the idea that it would be better woman to woman. Raven could help them understand what it is like to be a woman that is around gang life, it was more dangerous than being a man but Raven made sure that didn't stop her from doing what she needed to get done. If anything, it made her more valuable and powerful being a female in this type of business.

"Alright. Deal. I will still be involved."

"Didn't say you wouldn't be." Raven smirked. "Now let's get to work."

Ghost nodded and made his way towards the door, Midnight behind him. Everyone else had already made their way inside so they didn't have to wait for anyone.

"Oh shit, is that Midnight?"

"Ay, Midnight is back!"

"Been so long!"

Midnight smiled as she was greeted as soon as she walked in. People seemed shocked but happy to see her back. It has been so long since she was gone and last people heard, she was injured. Her ribs were fully healed now and she was ready to dive back in.

"Alright! What've I missed?" Midnight grinned as they walked into Ghost's office.

"I'm working on a new flavour. Trying bubble gum for the ladies that are looking for a little fun and flavour." MC grinned.

"Sales have risen since we starting selling at The Blue Moon. The girls are saying they have run out of product every day for the past week and a half and the cash shows that." HO mentioned.

"You know how I be on the block and shit. Been looking out for them niggas, ain't find none yet but when I do, it's over for them." Reezy crossed his arms in frustration. He has been looking for the Russians for a while but they keep slipping through his fingers and he was pissed. He needed to get revenge for hurting his girl and daring to attack his grandad.

Dee stepped up. "I haven't heard the five-o say shit about the powder being out in these streets. That shit is killing off parents. Tony was telling me there are two students in his class that have lost a parent and when I went to pick up Coco, I heard whispered that another child lost their uncle. There's way more people dropping dead from that shit that we don't know."

"Before, everyone was just snorting that shit. Now, people are injecting it. It's getting crazy... The new recruits and old recruits are doing well with their training. The new ones are going to be ready to be fully out soon." Tri added.

Ghost looked over at Midnight who was listening to everything that has been said. "Was that enough for you?"

Midnight smirked at him. "You know that's never good enough for me. You got another location of any other hideout they have?"

"Yeah but it's been looking empty. Only a couple of people. I haven't really had time to look them over in detail." Ghost showed her pictures of the location.

"Hm." Midnight began to look over the pictures. It was one floor, looked like a simple house in a simple neighbourhood. Nothing too crazy. Until the last picture. She squinted and lifted it closer to her face just to make sure she saw what she saw. "Oh hell nah. Y'all niggas didn't see this shit?" They all looked at her confused. "We need to get there now! These girls are not with their bullshit business, they were forced into their mess. Fuck, I can't believe I forgot about them. They're Odessa aged 20, Summer, aged 23 and Indigo, she's the youngest at 18."

"How you know them?" Reezy asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Because they were there." Was all she said at first and everyone understood what she meant. "They came in to give us food and tried to give us clothes but we refused. Vladimir really thought we we're going to stay there any longer. Hmph. Anyway, I got to talking to them, trying to find some shit out. They were a different group of girls. They are used to smuggle drugs around. They all got picked up at the same time, same location. A party in Detroit 8 months ago. Summer and Odessa were at the party, Indigo was walking past. It might be a little harder to get Summer out though..." Midnight trailed off.

"Why?" Ghost listened intensely to all the information that was being given. This was all new and it could help him.

"The damn girl done fell in love."

"Huh?"

"What?"

"Serious?"

"Stockholm?"

Midnight rubbed her forehead. "There's this boy, he's 20. He's been rolling with the Russians since he was 17, his older brother got him into that shit since he was the only family he had. She told me he hates it and wants to get out but Vladimir would kill him. He's one of the men that looks over the girls 24/7 but he won't do shit to hurt any of them, he protects them more than what the other people like. She claims they're in love and... I think she might be telling the truth. She even showed me a chain of that said 'S+N' that she hides in her shoe. If we're gonna get her out... he gonna have to come with."

Tri looked at her confused. "You do know he's a part of the problem?"

"Yes I know that nigga." Midnight rolled her eyes. "But she won't leave if he doesn't come with and he seems harmless."

"Keyword: seems. We don't know him or his true motive. We can only go off her word and if he fucks us over, we're fucked. I don't have time to put my people in danger because I let one of them fucks go. I'm not letting him get the best of us once again." Ghost told her with a pointed look.

"I know that Ghost which is why we won't come back here. We put them up in a motel or some shit for the night and later, they go to the feds and they can go back home." Midnight picked up the picture again. "Look, this is time stamped. It says 4:26 and if this is their daily routine, then they should be there now."

Ghost looked around the room, wanting to get everyone's input before making a decision. "So?"

MC shrugged. "I mean, when have we ever backed down from saving someone? It's a risk but it might be a risk we're going to have to take."

"I agree. If that lil nigga wanna be on our side, we can sort something out." Tri added.

"If he fucks us over... well, you know what will happen." Dee smirked.

HO sighed. "If we do this, we just gotta be ready for anything."

Ghost looked back at Midnight who had a smile on her face. "So, we rolling?"

He sighed. "Make sure whatever you need to get done is done. We leave in 10."

They all nodded before making their way out, leaving just Ghost and Midnight behind.

"Thanks, I know this wasn't easy for you."

"For both of our sakes. This best not fuck up. I do not have time for some dumb shit."

Midnight smirked. "If you're scared just say it. I'll protect you."

"Yeah sure." Ghost rolled his eyes. "I think you've forgotten who I am."

"I think you've forgotten that I don't care. You're still scared."

"Never scared."

"Then prove it." Midnight got a smirk in response. She always brought out his competitive side and she has been out of action for so long, she just needed some type of familiarity. She was ready for some action.

"Fine. Most kills?"

Midnight held out her hand. "Deal." The two shook on it. "Let's go."

"Hold on. You go get ready, I'm going to get someone to house sit." Ghost told her as he thought about the beautiful woman lying in his bed, waiting for him to come back.

Midnight gave him a look. "Ghost. They're fine. They're in the most secure building they can be in. There's no point in you trying to text her either because it's late and she's most likely sleeping. Just check the cameras or something."

Ghost looked at her, thought about it, before pulling out his phone. Midnight laughed because of how easily she could get him to do as she says, she missed it. Ghost checked all cameras. The garage, front door, back door, elevator, his floor and finally the ones in his home. As he went to his bedroom, he could see Jazmine was lying in bed talking on the phone. He guessed the other girls had woken up to.

"Well by the looks of it, she is awake." Ghost smirked and showed her his phone.

She rolled her eyes before moving towards the door. "Whatever. You don't need to send security, just text her and let's go."

"Fine."

Ghost sent her a quick text asking if she was okay then watched her on the camera. He felt creepy but it was his house after all, he was just looking out for her safety. By the large grin on her face and her sitting up in bed, he guessed she saw the message. She quickly tapped her fingers across the screen before talking again. Ghost had audio but he didn't want to listen in. He watched her name pop up on his phone, telling him she was fine and she hoped he was staying safe. He sent her another text, telling him he will be late home, which was weird to say, and watched her type again before lying back into the bed, talking away on the phone.

Feeling relieved that Jazmine was fine, Ghost straightened his posture and walked straight to the armour room. He collected the weapons he needed and made his way outside, where his team had just met up.

"Everyone ready?"

They all nodded.

"Good. Let's go."

Tonight, he only took a small group. Simple, easier and he trusted them all the most. HO and Ghost was once again up front while the rest were in the back.

Midnight was trying her best to sit still but she could literally feel the adrenaline beginning to pump through her veins. Tri saw this and laughed.

"Your ass hasn't sat still since we got to the warehouse."

"I'm sorry. It's been so long since I have been out. The all black and weapons are getting me hyped." Midnight shrugged.

"Well you have been playing mommy to a baby so I guess I can let you off. Where is little man anyway?" Tri asked.

"With my people. They're having him for a few days so I can do some work."

"You can't multitask?" Reezy teased.

Midnight rolled her eyes. "Like you know the first thing about babies. If I was you, I will start learning with your dumb ass. You can take Cairo for a day, figure that out."

"Oop. She got you there." MC laughed next to him.

Reezy kissed his teeth. "Whatever. That's all you niggas try and use against me."

"Aww we're sorry for bullying you." MC tried to say seriously but be couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"Yeah yeah whatever. You niggas are just jealous."

"Jealous of what? Having a crazy ass baby mama? I knew about Nike before your little situation. That girl ain't shit. She hung out with my baby mama before she dipped and abandoned Coco. I don't fuck with females like that. Usually hear about black children without their fathers but never about the black fathers that are good as shit. Or the single fathers out there. I've been raising that girl since she was 18 months, she's about to be 4." Dee told his cousin seriously. People would always criticise him for being in a gang but when it came to him being a father, there was no denying that he was good at it. He protected that little girl with his whole heart and wouldn't allow anyone to tell him different.

"Damn. You see, that's why I don't wanna baby mama. I want a wife." MC nodded.

Tri nudged his brother. "This one is getting close to our little doctor Faith so he going to be having one soon."

Dee rolled his eyes in annoyance. "You always in a nigga business."

"That sounds gay."

"It's not gay if it's your twin dumb ass. I swear Reezy, you can be so slow sometimes. Anyway, there's no harm there. I haven't found my girl yet but I still have time. Shit, I got more than time. Still 23 and ready to party. Plus, having a child is a handful. Miss Coco is enough for me to handle right now."

"What can I say, she loves her uncle Dee."

Suddenly, there was a knock coming from the front of the van and they all got serious.

"We're here." Ghost announced.

"Damn that was quick." Midnight commented.

They all climbed out the van that was not far from where the house was. The crouched behind the cars that were outside to get a closer look.

Ghost began to observe the area. He checked the streets, the houses, the lights, everything.

"I say there's at least 8 people inside, not including the people we are going for. 2 cars out front. All lights are on, meaning they are all awake. About 4 shadows have already walked past the window. This might be a loud entry." Midnight pointed out before Ghost could say anything. She saw Ghost squint at her so she smirked back. "Don't be acting brand new. You know stake outs is my thing."

Ghost shook his head with a slight smirk on his face. There was a reason they worked well together. He was silent, she was observant. They worked the best at night because they used the dark to their advantage in ways some people didn't understand. It was almost like Midnight could see in the dark. She could find anything at night.

"Look." Midnight pointed to the front lawn. "There's bottles out there. They must be drunk." As if on cue, a large man stumbled outside with an empty bottle in his hand. He made his way to one of the cars, opened it and collapsed inside. "Oh, this is too easy."

HO looked at his boss for their next move. "What's the plan?"

"Ok." Ghost took a deep breath. "Midnight, MC, Tri and I will go in first. We will make the way in clear, that's when Reezy, Dee and HO will come in after us. Kill the ones that are necessary, except the 3 girls we're looking for."

"And the boy." Midnight added.

Ghost looked at her for a second before looking back at the house. "Yeah, that nigga too." He looked up and saw two figures standing by the window. One looked like a female, the other looked like a male. That's when they saw the two hug. "I guess that's the couple. Let's go."

With skill, they all creeped up to the house, masks up, making sure they stayed hidden. Midnight walked up to the car and peered inside. The man was passed out. She slowly opened the door to hear him snoring away. She looked down in his lap and gagged. "Nasty fucker." There was a bag of cocaine that was spilled out onto his trousers... and his penis, that just so happened to be outside his pants. "That's fucking disgusting." She screwed her face up in disgust. She had no idea what he was about to do but did not want to know any detail of it.

Her eyes went wide when the man began to wake up. "What the, who ar-ugk!"

Before the man had a chance to shout, Midnight drove her knife into his temple, killing him instantly. "Ya naaassty." She turned to the men that were waiting for her to finish. She ducked back down and tip toed towards Ghost who was closes to the door. She smirked despite him not being able to see it but she knew he knew she was smirking. "1-0."

Ghost shook his head. "Childish."

"Come on, a nigga just waiting to fight some bastards." Reezy whispered yelled from the back.

Ghost rolled his eyes before stepping up to the door. He slightly pulled the handle down and saw that it was unlocked. 'Perfect.' He turned to his people behind him and nodded. They all had a weapon in their hand, ready.

He stood and with lightning speed, made his way inside. Everyone else filled in behind him in formation. "Nobody fucking move! Put your fucking hands up."

There was 6 men surrounding a table of alcohol, guns and cocaine.

"Damn, don't you know you don't get high on your own supply." MC shook his head disappointed.

"Nigga we do the same thing shit." Tri looked at him confused.

"Oh yeah." MC couldn't help but laugh at his slip up.

During this time, one of the men reached for his gun but Midnight saw this and pulled the trigger. He was hit right in the chest. He was going to die slowly. "2-0."

Ghost had to hold himself from rolling his eyes. "MC, get the rest." She nodded and did what she was told. HO, Dee and Reezy walked in all with their guns raised and ready to shoot. "Midnight, you're with me. The rest of you stay here... kill whoever tries something." They nodded.

Reezy snickered. "I dare one of you motherfuckers to move. I fucking dare you! Try it and see if I won't blow your fucking heads off. I'm a real nigga so I mean that shit too."

Ghost and Midnight made their way through the house. "I check down here, you go upstairs and get the girls."

Midnight nodded and started to walk up the stairs. As she got on the landing, she saw three doors. She was about to approach the door she saw the silhouettes standing at when a weight swept her off her feet.

"Fuck." She groaned out, winded. Doing her best to recover quickly, she grabbed the persons leg and pulled, causing them to trip, falling on their stomach. From the moan of pain, Midnight knew this was a female.

The female flipped onto her back and tried to kick Midnight, but she expected it and rolled over. She jumped to her feet and kicked the woman in the chest when she tried to get back up. She also had a mask on so she couldn't really see what she looked like but she could see the neat finger waves in her head and that she was black. Before Midnight could kick her back down again, the woman somehow spun and was on her feet. They squared up to each other, waiting for who was going to swing first.

"Fuck it." Midnight muttered. Adrenaline was pumping through her veins as she swung at the woman in front of her but nothing connected because she ducked. Midnight anticipated this and swung her other fist in her jaw. "Ha. Gotcha." But that punch to the face was did nothing to her and she swung straight back. They started to exchange blows. They were fast and powerful, both trying to out fight the other. Both women were strong and were not about to roll over and give up. Frustrated at how long it was taking, Midnight managed to get her hand through and punched the woman dead on her lips.

"Bitch!" The woman shouted. She ripped off her mask and threw it on the floor. From what Midnight could see, she busted her lip pretty bad. As the woman looked up, ready to fight again, Midnight froze.

"Huh?" Midnight let the sound of confusion slip out her mouth as she stared the older woman in front of her. She couldn't believe if what she was see was what she was seeing.

"What?"

"You lo-" Before Midnight could finish, she heard footsteps running up the stairs.

"Midnight you good?" Ghost asked.

She quickly pulled down her mask and turned towards the stairs. "Ghost, wai-" Midnights chest popped out as she flew forward and landed in Ghost's arms. The woman had kicked Midnight in the back after she turned her back, given her open access.

"Wait!" Midnight shouted desperately as she went to stop the woman but it was too late. The other black woman raced towards the window and jumped out. Ghost and Midnight ran to the window to see the woman sprinting to the car that didn't have the dead body and drive away. "Fuck!"

"Why're you so angry? People's gotten away before." Ghost questioned as he pulled down his mask.

"Ugh, I will explain when we get back. Let's find them and go." Midnight sighed and she placed her hand on her back. "Any kills?"

"1."

"2-1."

Ghost reached the door that they believed had the girls and kicked it down and behold. They were there. They looked at Ghost with wide eyes as they huddled on the only bed in the room.

"Don't. Touch. Them."

The leader of the Panther's looked to his left to see a lean, young, white boy pointing a gun at his head.

"Don't move or I'll blow your fucking head off."

Ghost sighed, not being bothered for the long 'put your gun down, no one has to get hurt' talk. Instead, he stuck his hand out to the side, grabbed the gun, twisted the boy's arm which made him shout in pain and let go of the gun. Ghost caught the gun in his other hand and within seconds, let all the bullets drop to the floor.

"Show off." Midnight mumbled as she stepped out his shadow.

"Midnight?!"

Midnight smirked and held her hands out. "Yes, the one and only."

In front of them were the 3 girls Midnight had mentioned before. One looked of Greek decent, another looked mixed race, about the same shade as Jazmine and the last one seemed to be Native America.

"You actually came to look for us?" The Native American girl asked.

"I doubt they did Indigo." The girl with the pitch-black hair mumbled.

Ghost squinted his eyes at her. "We didn't plan to actually but if you want us to walk out here and leave you, we can. That's no problem to me." The girl immediately got quiet. "Yeah I thought so."

"Midnight, that's Noah, the one I was telling you about." The mixed girl told her, grinning from ear to ear.

Midnight looked him up and down as he cradled his red hand. She knew Huey didn't hurt him that bad. It made her really wondered how he lasted so long in the gang because he didn't seem to be able to cope with a little pain too well. "Oh." The girl stood and Midnights eyes went wide. "Shit Summer!"

"You have to be fucking kidding me." Ghost mumbled as he rubbed his forehead. This was the least thing he needed.

"You're pregnant?!"

Summer smiled and rubbed her growing bump proudly. "Yeah. Me and Noah are having a baby. A little girl."

"But, huh." Raven the remembered the months that have passed. "How was you going to raise a baby in this fucked environment if we never came for you?"

"Well, Vladimir gave us permission to keep the baby. Well, that was only if it was a boy to keep the gang strong but we didn't tell him that it was actually a girl." Summer explained.

"Permission?" Midnight looked at them with wide eyes and they all nodded. "Well ain't that some shit."

"Guys, I hate to break up your little reunion but-" Ghost got cut off by the sound of 2 bullets flying through the air. "We need to leave so are you coming or not."

Odessa raised towards the door. "Don't have to tell me twice. I wanna go home!"

They all made their way downstairs with Ghost in front. Midnight paused as she looked at the mask the mystery woman had left on the floor. She could see the blood from her busted lip glistening in the light. That's when an idea popped in her head that could help the crazy theory that was spinning around in her head so she quickly picked it up and put it in her pocket. As they made their way to the living room, they saw that only 3 men were left.

"You got what you needed?" MC asked.

Ghost nodded.

"Dead or alive?" Dee asked.

The leader thought about it for a second. "Leave 1. Let him tell Vladimir that I'm coming for his neck very soon."

As soon as Ghost gave the instructions, Reezy let two bullets fly through the air, leaving one man. He walked up to the last man standing who was breathing heavy and pulled down his mask so he could see the large smirk on his face.

"You got lucky, you're the last bitch standing." Reezy placed the gun to the man's temple, burning his skin from just being used. "Tell your bitch ass boss that Reezy personally said to suck his left nut. No homo. Make sure to add the no homo part... because if I find out you didn't, imma beat your ass!"

"Reezy ease up man, let's bounce." Tri had to pull his cousin back from the man quivering in fear. Watching the way the man was acting made them all question how he even got into this lifestyle because he looked as if he wouldn't last a second.

"Yeah that's right! Shake like the bitch you are, haha!" Reezy did a little jog from when his cousin pulled onto his arm to get him out the house. "That was so damn easy. I need to light some place up!"

Ghost shook his head. "We're done for the day. We have to put these kids up in a motel."

"Are you going to take us back home or keep us as bait?" Indigo couldn't help but to ask. She had now developed trust issues, especially with men. She couldn't trust a word any of them said to her until she saw results.

Midnight turned to looked at the girls and the one boy there. "Look, we're not like them." She started off seriously. "I mean, yeah we sell and kill people but we're much nicer. We saved your asses which says something. Tonight, you rest then tomorrow you meet us at the mall where we will give you what you need and then you can go to the police station across the street. No strings attached, no connection to us or Chicago for that matter once you go back home."

Indigo felt a bit better knowing she would be able to go home after months of smuggling drugs and other things she wanted to burn from her memory.

"Don't have to tell me twice." Odessa said as she jumped in the van. They could all see she was desperate to go home and the rest climbed in behind her.

HO started up the van and drove away from the house that had a few dead bodies lying around.

Midnight looked over and saw Noah and Summer holding onto each other tight. It was kind of weird to see considering her circumstances. "So, what you planning on doing with the baby now that you're free?" The young couple eyes connecting with Midnight before looking around. Everyone was watching and waiting for an answer. "I mean, your brother wouldn't be too happy to hear your running off with a girl you got pregnant. Leaving your only family behind."

Noah shrugged. "I mean, he would've but it doesn't matter what he thinks because he's dead." He nodded. "Yeah, my brother was killed by that dickhead. They tried to say it was you guys but one other guy told me Vladimir pulled the trigger himself. I always hated him. Now I have nothing holding me back, I have a new family. Thank you for getting me out of there... now I can live a normal life and be a father to my little girl." He smiled at Summer and rubbed her swelling stomach.

"That's some crazy shit." MC commented.

"I said the same thing." Indigo shook her head.

"Well just know you can go home soon to whoever was waiting for you in Detroit."

"Well I was in college studying to become a biochemist but I have no idea what's going to happen now. Being away and being pregnant? I was so close to graduating. My parents are going to flip."

"Whatever happens, just know I'm here with you." Noah told her sincerely.

Odessa sighed. "Before all this, I was just working jobs back to back just to get by. The one time my friend convinces me to go to a college party, I get fucking kidnapped. Ain't that some shit."

"At least you weren't just minding your own business on the same street." Indigo spoke up. "I just left my friend's house that lived in that area who I just visited. I had just graduated. That's when I heard a female crying for help so I went to look... and here I am. In a back of a strange van, with strange people going to an unknown location."

"Ay, don't start that sassy shit. Niggas trying to help you." Reezy told her.

"What he's trying to say is... you're welcome." Tri smirked.

Midnight rolled her eyes and lifted both her hands to slap the back of their necks as they sat either side of her. "You two can be such a pain in the ass sometimes." She then addressed the people they just saved. "Look. When you go to the cops, tell them to get you the fuck outta here and don't look back, ever. They will kill you if they find you."

"But don't worry, he won't get the chance because we will kill them before they have the chance to." Dee reassured them.

"You wanna send me an email when you're done?" Odessa asked sarcastically.

MC shrugged. "Sure thing. Expect it soon."

They all lightly laughed. It wasn't that funny but it was the most light hearted conversation they could have in the circumstances.

At the front, Ghost rubbed his forehead. He had a mini head ache growing and he didn't like it. The sun was beginning to rise and his business was still not finished. He still had to get the girls and the boy somewhere for the night and make sure they had everything before they meet up again, go to Jazmine's house then finally home. They all agreed to regroup tomorrow at the Blue Moon when the girls go back on stage since it had already been a long day and night. Ghost didn't want his people to be drained because that wouldn't be good for them. Jazmine had given him her key so he could get her some clothes for her to wear tomorrow. She knew the girls would be grateful that their boyfriends got them some clothes to wear too, plus, they didn't want to be in the clothes they wore to the funeral the day before. It wouldn't feel nice.

"You good?" HO asked as he saw Ghost rub his forehead intensely.

"Yeah. Just trying to get this headache to go away."

"You know rubbing it doesn't mean that it will go away." HO smirked.

Ghost rolled his eyes. "I know that. I just can't wait to go back home."

"Would it be because there's a certain someone currently lying in your bed fast asleep? I mean, I get it, I do too. You're not alone here."

Ghost sighed through his nose. His friend wasn't wrong but he just didn't want to admit it. He really did want to hold that person that was lying in his bed right now. Her body felt nice pressed up against his and he wanted to feel that again. He just had to.

"Don't worry, we'll be home soon." HO reassured him before getting serious. "We're here."

"Good. Let's get this shit done." Ghost tapped behind him to get their attention. "We're here."

"About damn time." Reezy said as he made his way to get out the van. Ghost couldn't help but agree. He just wanted everything to move on quickly so he could get back home.

He needed to get back home soon.

* * *

"What?! What do you mean they killed my men, took my drug girls, even that boy that I couldn't give two shits about and then said they were coming for my neck?!"

"Uh I um." The man stuttered nervously.

"And your dumb ass was the only one alive?!"

"Ah no sir, I mean, yes sir." He cleared his throat, trying his best to sound in control but he was scared of dying. "And Reezy said to personally tell him to suck his left nut- no homo."

"Son of a bitch!" Vladimir shouted and shoot 5 times in the air. He didn't even care about the debris from the celling dropping onto his head and shoulders. "Disrespect me... that's the wrong move. I will fucking end them all. Everything single one of them motherfuckers." He began to curse in Russian but paused when he remembered something. "Where the fuck is Cheetah?"

"Excuse me?"

Vladimir squinted his eyes. He was about ready to kill this man. "Did I stutter? Cheetah! Where the fuck is she?!"

"I'm here."

He looked up as he saw the slim but muscular woman standing by the door with her arms crossed. Her brown skin was somehow glowing and her finger waves were rough from the fight.

"Where have you been?"

She rolled her maroon eyes as she took a seat in front of his desk. That's when he could see her busted lip. "Relax. I had to sort some shit out."

"Well you let my fucking drug girls go."

She squinted her eyes at him. "What the fuck are you on about? I did no such fucking thing you ungrateful piece of shit."

Vladimir took a deep breath. She was really the only person that was brave enough to talk to him the way she did. She knew she could get away with it. They had a deep history so it was the only reason he would allow her to talk to him like that.

"Just... tell me what the fuck happened?" Vladimir asked. The man couldn't even hide his shock. His hot-headed boss allowed someone to cuss him, still be alive and then get him to be calm. It was so weird that it was even scary to see.

"I was chilling in the house. Your men got drunk and high. The girls and that Noah boy was all in one room. Next thing I hear a gun shot and someone coming up the stairs. I tackled the girl but she managed to bust my lip but for some reason, she paused and looked as if she recognised me. It was strange." Cheetah recounted.

'Fuck.' Vladimir thought. He tried to hide his annoyance but Cheetah saw right through it. 'They couldn't know, could they?'

"What does it mean?"

"Nothing, continue."

Cheetah looked at him and knew he was hiding something and she wanted to know what it was. He seemed more rattled than she thought he would be. She thought it was nothing but it obviously seemed like something. She was going to make him address it after telling him what happened because if he didn't, she might just have to beat the living day lights out of him.

"Then Ghost came up the stairs so while she had her back turned, I kicked her into him, jumped out the window and raced to the car." She finished her story and looked at the other man in the room. "And your dumb ass couldn't do shit about the men that were downstairs?"

He slightly jumped as he realised he was now being addressed. "Huh? Oh, um, there was 5 of them. They all had guns pointed at us. They had too much power over us."

"No! No they don't!" Vladimir shouted in frustration. "If you give them power, they will think they have power!" He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. "You have... 5 seconds to get the fuck out of my face before I blast it across my fucking floor. 1." The man didn't have to be asked twice and raced out the room. "I swear I got a bunch of bitches in this gang."

Cheetah smirked amusingly. It was funny to her to see him stressed out. "Maybe if you recruited more woman to do more of your dirty work that your men do instead of limiting them to be whores and flirt with your enemies and getting more customers... your business would move just along even better. You've seen what Natasha is capable of."

"Ha! We both know what her sister was like and that bitch is dead. You really think that?"

"I know that."

"You sure? Because my regulars tell me time and time again how nice it was to snort coke off a sexy women's breast."

She rolled her eyes. "You guys are sick."

"It's business."

"Whatever. Let's get back to my business. Why the fuck did that Panther girl look at me as if she's seen me before?"

Vladimir gritted his teeth. "How the fuck am I supposed to know? Maybe she seen you walking around the mall or something."

"Stop fucking with me!" She shouted at him. "You and I both know this is the first time I have stepped foot in Chicago and even then, this whole time I have been doing behind the scenes work. I have just about been to fucking KFC. She acted as if she knew me Vlad, what are you not getting through your fucking skull."

He shrugged. "I don't fucking know. Maybe you remind her of someone or something. You know you all-"

"Don't even finish that sentence unless you want the taste slapped out of your mouth." She threated, knowing exactly what he was about to say.

"As I was saying... you might just have a face that everyone thinks is well known. Nothing too big."

She didn't believe him. She knew he was hiding something because he wouldn't have given her such a stupid explanation. She knew deep down, there was more to it and she was going to find out what it was. By any means necessary. She didn't mind if it required kicking Vladimir down to get what she needed to know.

"Fine... I gotta go." Cheetah went and stood, getting ready to leave.

"You don't wanna stay and keep my company?" He asked her flirtatiously.

"No." She answered back with no emotion. "Don't call me unless you need something for business. If not, do not disturb, I'll be sleeping."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that."

"Suck a left nut!" She shouted before shutting the door behind her, not looking back.

Hearing that made his smile drop. That was the second time he was hearing that today. 'Fuck...'

* * *

Jazmine kicked out her legs as she stretched but stopped when she felt herself kick something. Someone's leg. 'Who is this?' She lifted the covers to see a pair of brown arms resting on her waist. That's when she remembered where she was and she slightly smiled. She didn't hear him come in but she was glad he was.

"I got what you wanted."

Jazmine slightly jumped as she heard the deep voice say right into her ear. "Shit Huey. I thought you was sleeping."

"I was, then I felt you wake up."

She turned around so they were face to face but he kept his eyes closed. She reached up and stroked his cheek softly that was strangely smooth. He had facial hair but there was nothing there. "Have you thought about growing a beard?"

"I never was one for facial hair. This goatee just happened. Even then, I might just shave it all off."

"Hm. I know I will like either one. I'm not picky." Jazmine leaned forward and lightly kissed him on the lips. His eyes were still closed but he pulled her closer, deepening the kiss. "Hm." She threw her leg around his waist and pressed her body against his. She loved the feeling of him on her skin. "I can do this all day."

His phone began to ring.

"Or so I thought."

Huey pulled away and finally opened his eyes, already missing the feeling of her lips on his. "Sorry." He apologised.

"It's ok. Take it, it might be important." She gave him a kiss in reassurance.

He reached over and grabbed his phone, not even looking at the caller id.

"Yeah."

"_You up?"_

"I answered didn't I."

"_Whatever, we need to go now. I don't want them girls to be held up at the motel any longer, they need to get home."_

"Raven how are you not tired?"

"_I have a baby now, I can run on little sleep for long periods of time." She answered him back. "Get ready nigga! I already called your brother and had him cuss me out, I don't have time to be cussing you back."_

Huey rolled his eyes and looked down at Jazmine who was just sitting there watching him talk. "I'll see you in about an hour."

"_Fine."_

Huey hung up and placed his phone back on his bedside table.

"Everything ok?" Jazmine asked.

Huey swung his legs off the bed and sighed. "Yeah, I just gotta go to the mall."

"Oh can I come? I wanna buy a new outfit for tonight."

Huey stayed still, thinking about what to say. He wasn't going there for leisure, he was meeting the girls from last night to give them what they need and send them home. He didn't really want her to come but the mall was a public place, nothing should go wrong and even if it does, he will protect her.

"The thing is, I got something to handle at the mall but you can still come along. You can walk around while I do what I need to do. It's up to you." Huey suggested to her.

Jazmine thought if she should just stay here and wait for him to come back but then again, she didn't want him out of her sight for any longer. He was already away when she slept, she wanted him close.

"I'll come. The girls will come too so I won't be lonely while you handle you business."

Huey nodded. "Alright. You wanna get in the shower first?"

She got out the bed and walking in front of him, still only in her underwear she straddles Huey. He smirked at her and rested his hands on her hips. He began to stroke her hips as he felt the stretch marks that her occupying the area. "I mean, we could always shower together... but I guess you're not ready yet."

Huey slightly clenched his teeth, he would do anything just to take her right here, right now... but he needed to get his things sorted out. "Oh I'm ready. I'm just not sure you're ready because trust me, you will fall in love with me."

"Wooooow someone's cocky."

"I just know what I'm working with." He flited with her.

Jazmine giggled and gave him a peck on the lips. "Do you have any spare toiletry?"

"It's all in the bag, I can get you a towel though." Huey told her.

"Thank you so much Huey. You didn't have to."

"I mean, I kinda did. Your keys are in the bag also." Huey pointed behind her where a black bag sat.

"Much appreciated." She removed herself from his lap and grabbed the bag.

"Don't take too long." Huey smirked at her eye roll.

"Shh. I don't have any makeup so I won't. Stupid." She stuck her tongue out at him, causing him to jump up after her. "Ah!" She screamed and giggled as he chased her to the bathroom. "Go away!"

She slammed the door in his face and couldn't help but burst into laughter as she locked the door.

"Real childish Jazmine."

"Haha. You can't get me." She walked over to the shower and turned it on, making sure it was hot. The room was already steaming up. She tied up her hair, stripped down and stepped into the shower.

* * *

"Damn my ass forgot how cold Chicago could be." Royalty complained as she stuffed her hands in her coat pocket.

"Ay it's not that cold." Riley looked at her strange.

Royalty kissed her teeth. "Do I have to remind you... I'm a bomboclaut island girl? This weather is not for me."

"I still have no clue how you're not used it after we have been living here for years. Even Woodcrest had cold winters." Ming said to her.

"Whatever, let's just inside."

Today, there was a whole group of them that had made their way to the mall. Four went for shopping while the other seven of them went there to handle some business. Winter was kicking in and some was feeling it more than others.

Jazmine looked up at Huey who had his arm wrapped around her. She really enjoyed this position and knew it was something she could get used to. "You going to do any shopping?"

He shook his head. "Nah, I just wanna get my shit over with and go."

"Ah come on Huey, relax a little."

"Yeah Huey, relax a little." Raven teased from her spot next to Jazmine.

They all stopped in the middle of the mall where there were empty seats that they were about to fill. "Alright, Cindy, Ming, Royalty and Jazmine, you can go and do your shopping while we'll be here. If anything happens, call one of us and if we have to go, we'll let you know." Huey told them, which they nodded to since they were given a brief talk about it before they left.

Caesar pulled out his car keys and placed it in Cindy's hands. "If we need to leave, these are the keys to my car for you to take for you to get home. You can pick up your car when we exchange once we link back up."

"Thanks." Cindy reached up and gave him a kiss on the cheek, making him smile.

"Eww." Raven said childishly.

Caesar stuck his tongue out at her. "Jealous."

"Whatever." She rolled her eyes before looking over at the girls. "So, Huey and I kind touched upon the idea of getting you guys some type of official self-defence training. Mostly hand to hand, a little gun or knife. You know, basics. We just wanted to let y'all know that the shit that happened a few months ago is never gonna happen again and we will make sure of it."

Ming looked between her friends who all shared the same thoughts. "I mean, yeah, we're up for it. We had some guys up in Woodcrest that could get us anything we needed for half price of what they would usually get it for if we ever needed anything."

"Serious?" Dante asked shocked. He wouldn't expect them to know someone with that type of access.

"Yup. Easy shit." Royalty nodded.

"There's these two guys, Ed and Rummy. The craziest duo you will ever meet. Ed is the descendent of the man that founded Woodcrest. He got a few screws loses but he was cool with us. They kinda monitored us when we started to smoke and drink, could get us anything we wanted. I even went on some bat shit adventures with them. Shooting guns and shit but then my parents tried to limit how much I saw them. They weren't no creepy guys, they were chill. They're like our older, deranged, brothers." Cindy explained to them.

"They used that privilege to great use."

Jazmine shook her head. "I wouldn't say they did all the time... they would shoot up places for no damn reason sometimes."

"Damn, I didn't know you got down with niggas like that."

"They weren't niggas, they some white boys." Royalty told Riley.

Hiro looked shocked. "So, that's just how it be in Woodcrest?"

Jazmine shrugged. "Pretty much."

"And they didn't get in any trouble?" Demetrius asked with the same amount of shock.

"Not one time. I mean, they may get arrest but they were out within 12 hours at most." Ming told him.

"You guys were really rolling with the gang before rolling with a real gang." Riley snickered.

"I guess you could say that."

Their conversation was cut off by Huey's phone, making them remember what some of them was actually there for.

"Yeah?" He answered. "Good. Meet me by H&M." He said into the phone before hanging up.

"They here?" Raven asked, earning her a nod in response. "Alright." She reached into her pocket and pulled out some money before handing Jazmine some money, who was shocked and confused. "Can you buy some clothes for me please? Cairo just keeps growing out of the ones I have out of nowhere and this is the first time I have stepped foot in the mall in a minute."

"Uh, sure thing. What size is he?"

"6-9 months. Can you mostly get winter wear? Or any summer clothes on sale will do." Raven informed her.

Dante lightly chuckled. "Not easy is it? I'm glad Coco is small/average for her age. Her clothes last a good while. One of the traits she took from her mother."

"Must be fucking nice. This boy looks like he's going to be 6ft at 13 by this point. The doctors say he will reach up there by the way his charts are looking."

"Ha. Good luck with that." Demetrius laughed and pointed at her.

Royalty looked at Raven and smiled. "Don't worry girl. We will make sure little homie is dressed to the nines."

"Thank you, I appreciate it."

The dancers finally said their goodbyes before skipping off to the one of the many clothes store they were dying to go back to after being away for months.

"Aw look at Huey's ex and current girlfriend getting along. Happy families." Caesar teased his friend.

Huey rolled his eyes before sitting on the bench, some following him. "Shut up Micahel."

"Ouch, the formality hurts."

"He has a point. Stop making everything weird." Raven punched Caesar in the arm, who quickly rubbed the spot she hit. "Anyway. We need to talk, Huey, Riley, Dante, Demetrius."

"Damn what a nigga do now?" Riley asked annoyed.

"Nothing." She took a deep breath. She didn't know how to word it because it had been sitting on her mind all night. She thought she was crazy but maybe she wasn't. She had no clue what to think or what to say at this point so she let her mouth run with whatever it wanted. "I think you guys have another family member."

They all looked at her confused, even Hiro and Caesar.

"I mean, I think everyone has endless family." Hiro squinted at her.

She rolled her eyes. "I know that, I mean." She took a deep breath before pulling out a clear bag with the mask she picked up last night. "When we went to that house last night, you know how I had the fight with the woman. Well, when she took off her mask after I busted her lip, she looked familiar to me."

"Sooooo?" Caesar dragged out.

"Ugh, nigga let me finish. She looks familiar because she has the same eyes and facial expression as a nigga I have known for nearly 26 years and another 3 I have known for nearly 24." She looked pointedly between the brothers and twins.

"So what you're trying to say is, there's a Freeman rolling with the Russians?" Huey cleared up, making Raven nod. "But it doesn't make any sense. 1, why would they be on the enemies' side and 2, how comes we don't know about them? All Freeman's know Freeman's."

Raven sighed and rubbed her forehead. "I don't know Huey, I thought the same thing but when I tell you she looked just like you guys, it was scary."

"You think she's a cousin or one of our siblings or something?" Dante asked, curious about who this woman could be.

"Nah." She shook her head. "She looked a bit older. Older as in, your grandad, aunt Cookie or late uncle Ryan's child."

The Freeman boys all now had a lost look on their faces. Their family were close, they knew about everyone who shared the same last name as them. Robert was the only one that had children, their fathers. Christian, Dominic and Mario. Ryan slept around with many women but never produced a child and Cookie was said to have fertility complications which caused her to have 4 miscarriages and 1 still born before her husband passed away from cancer. The only Freeman's from them were accounted for. There was no talk of any other child.

"But, that doesn't make any sense." Demetrius said what they were all thinking.

"I thought that too but the resemblance was uncanny. Not many people have the same maroon eyes you guys have."

Huey was deep in thought. If it was true, how did she end up with the Russians? Never in all this time on earth has anyone muttered a word about aunt Cookie or uncle Ryan having an offspring. So how was it possible that Raven saw someone that had the trademark look of a Freeman? He needed to find out so he pulled out his phone and went to dial a number but before he did, he turned to Raven. "You saying that's her blood?" Raven nodded, certain. "Ok, when we're done here, can you bring it to Pedro and ask him to get someone to test it asap."

"Sure. I was going to anyway, just wanted to run it by you first."

Dante let out a breath. "Damn. We got a whole family member we don't know?"

"Shit, niggas best start owning up. Keeping a secret like that. A bitch is betraying the family, we should've known that shit."

"Maybe she is the long-lost daughter of Ryan Freeman that he didn't know about? The baby mama ran off when she was pregnant before he knew." Hiro logical thought.

"Yeah that could be it." Caesar nodded in agreement.

"Only way to find out is to investigate." Huey dialled the number. As he did, he saw the four people he was waiting for coming his way so he knew he needed to be quick.

"_Hello?"_ The person answered on the other line.

"Hey Jaliyah. How are you?"

"_Good, just on my break right now. Watcha need nigga?"_ She asked her older cousin. They were the family to check up on each other every now and then to see if the other was alive but she knew in his tone that he needed her help.

"I need you to look over some medical records of grandma, aunt Cookie and uncle Ryan for me. I need to know if there were any children born that we do not know about." Huey requested.

"_Huh?"_ Jaliyah was beyond confused. _"Nigga what business I got looking at them shits?"_

"It's a long to explain now as I have something to do but can you just do this favour for me please? I will tell you, Anthony and Monique everything once you get some info. Alright?"

Jaliyah sighed. This was not what she expected her older cousin to come drop on her while she was at work, on her much-needed break. However, she couldn't deny her curiosity about what it was about.

"_Ok. I'll work on it now while I have time left. You owe me cuz."_

Huey smirked. "Yeah I gotchu. Don't worry. Later."

"_Bye."_

Huey hung up just in time as Noah, Odessa, Indigo and Summer all stood in front of him. They all looked well rested but also a bit paranoid. He understood the way they were acting which is why he wanted to this to go quickly.

"Any trouble." Huey asked, immediately going into Ghost mode.

Noah shook his head. "No. Everything was clear. I checked and made sure we weren't followed."

"Good." Ghost turned towards MC who nodded. The dread picked up the backpack they had carried for them. "This is yours. Some money in there from what we took from that house you were at. It's in four stacks. Do as you please with it. You should've seen the police station across the street as you walked in. They will help you from there. Call your parents or whoever is looking for you. Tell them limited information because if you tell them anything, they will keep you here longer and you don't want that do you?" They shook their heads. "Alright. That's it."

"Remember. You don't know us either." Midnight reminded them.

Summer pulled Midnight in a hug which sort of caught her off guard. She could feel her bump lightly resting on her own stomach. "Thank you guys so much! After everything that man put you through, but you're still standing here looking strong and even came back to help us. I will forever be thankful to you, even if I am meant to forget about you."

Midnight shrugged as she stepped back from the hug. "Ain't nothing. We just like seeing dickheads like him crumble."

Dee laughed. "You got that right sis."

"I think we should go now." Indigo spoke up. "I mean, I am thankful for everything you did to help us but I'm getting anxiety just standing around."

"Right. Thank you, sorry if I sounded bitchy last night. It's been a rough few months." Odessa rubbed her arms timidly. She was completely opposite to who they saw when they first found her.

"No problem." Midnight smiled softly at them.

"Ay, me and Dee are going to watch them walk over ite? We gonna dip after too." Tri announced.

Ghost nodded, liking the idea. "Yeah, that's a good idea. I'll see you later." They all dapped each other up before walking away with the drug girls and Noah walking further in front of them so it didn't look like they were together.

Caesar sighed. They had barely been out but he felt as if they had done so much. "Let's go find the girls now."

"I just text Ming, they're heading into footlocker."

Riley laughed at Hiro who was smiling ear to ear. "Damn, your ass is whipped already. That's some weak nigga shit."

"No its not dumb ass." Raven rolled her eyes at the youngest Freeman. "It's called being grown and actually being mature about relationships. Some shit you need to learn."

"Ohhhhh." Hiro and Caesar instigated.

Riley kissed his teeth. "Whatever. A real nigga like me will never be whipped over no female." Lies. A complete and utter lie. He knew he was whipped on a female right now. They all knew it and she wasn't even his girl official. He still had a little time to make up for and he was making sure he made his way back into her good books.

"You let mom hear you say that and see if she don't slap the taste out of your mouth for thinking that." Huey smirked as he saw his brothers face drop. He tried to recover but it was too late, they already saw.

* * *

"Oh my gosh this is so cute!"

"Jazmine. That's the 5th thing you have said is cute and we just walked into the store."

"I know Cin... but this is so cute!"

Cindy shook her head at her friend before walking away. They just got to Footlocker as they all randomly decided to buy a pair of sneakers when Jazmine had wondered to the baby section. She had been shopping for Raven and had a few dollars left to buy the baby one outfit. There, Jazmine was tearing up with happiness at the adorable, baby sized clothes.

"Someone catching baby fever..." Ming trailed off as she smirked at Jazmine.

She pouted. "And what if I am?"

Ming held her hands up in defence and just laughed. "I mean, I guess we all get it every now and then."

"No Ming, hers is all the time." Royalty pointed out.

Cindy was still close enough to hear what Royalty said and went back over to the group of friends, forgetting the shoe she was looking at for a second. "Uh huh. Don't act like you don't have them moments too. Yours isn't as bad as Jazzy's but your ass be having them moments."

"Well who knows, I might be looking after a baby in a few months that never came from me."

Jazmine looked at her sympathetically. "But you guys talked it over right?"

Royalty sighed and nodded. "I know but that shit be playing with a girls head ever since. For a bitch's name to be Nike, that's just ghetto and I have no time for a ghetto baby mama because that creates problem."

"Well who knows, she might be nice."

Ming, Cindy and Royalty looked at her to say 'seriously?' They all knew Royalty had every right to feel the way she was feeling but the optimistic Jazmine always tried to find ways to make a situation better. However, this time, it didn't work.

"Ok, fine, fine. Leave me alone!" Jazmine dramatically dismissed her friends, making them laugh but leave anyway.

Royalty went over and looked over at the new display of Jordan's in the men's section. She always disliked how sneakers gave woman the weird designed or coloured shoes were as men had nicer shoes that she would go for. She picked up one shoe and began to look over the design and colour.

"I see you have nice taste."

Royalty slightly jumped as she heard a voice right next to her. The voice wavered as they chuckled at her reaction.

"Damn, sorry, I didn't mean to scare you like that."

She turned to see a light skin male who looked around the same age as her, standing there in the referee looking uniform. She couldn't deny and say he wasn't good looking.

"It's fine. I was just spaced out for a second looking at these shoes."

Before he could say anything, Jazmine called her name. "Royalty looked at these baby shoes!" She shouted before disappearing between the racks of clothes in seconds, making the girl wonder what was going through her friend's head.

"Hm. Royalty. That defiantly suits you." He smiled cheekily at her which she thought was cute. "Yeah, these shoes are fire at the moment. We have limited stock on these shoes as they are selling out fast." He looked down at the sneakers she had on before looking back at her. "I say you're a roughly a size 6."

Her eyes widened as she looked down at her own feet and back up at him. "Nigga, how you know that?" He shrugged cockily as Royalty looked at his name. "Winston got some skills I see."

"I mean, I can show you what other skills I got if you allow me to kindly take your number."

'And I oop.' Royalty thought. 'Now that! Was smooth. But damn, Riley. My boo. Nigga you lucky I'm trying to cuff your ass.'

She smiled apologetically at Winston. "Look, I'm-" She had no time to lightly decline his offer when Riley slide up next to her out of nowhere, scaring her. "Shit! What the hell is wrong with you niggas and sneaking up on a me?"

Riley automatically got defensive and squared up to the other male. "Who's you?"

"Name's Winston and I was just helping Royalty here."

Riley looked back and forth between the two. "Do y'all know each other?"

"No, I just met him." Royalty sighed and rubbed her forehead, not wanting Riley to get all protective and start something.

"Well he said your name as if you've known each other for ages."

Royalty rolled her eyes. "Riley... don't start, please."

"I ain't staring shit."

On the other side of the store, the three official couples and Raven stood, watching the whole ordeal go down.

"He's starting shit isn't he?" Jazmine asked.

"Yup." Huey, Raven, Caesar and Hiro answered with barely a bat of an eyelid. They knew how Riley was already so just stood back and enjoyed the show.

Riley looked at the sneaker in Royalty's hand. "You want that baby?"

Royalty was confused and then remembered what she was holding in her hand. "Oh right, um, sure yeah."

"Ite." He turned to Winston who looked unbothered. "Nigga with the bitch ass name, get my girl these shoes in her size. Um-"

"6." Winston answered for her.

"Who the fu-"

"Riley. Re-fucking-lax." Royalty had to whisper-yelled at him and she glared into his eyes. She turned back to Winston with an apologetic smile once again. "Sorry about that but yes that size." He nodded and went to the back to get the shoes she wanted. Once he was out of frame, Royalty swiftly sent a back hand to Riley's chest. "Why you have to act like that?"

He jumped back confused. "Watchu mean? Act like what?"

"Like one jancro."

That just confused him even more, him being unfamiliar with Jamaican dialect. "Huh?"

"Ugh. Forget it. Let's just get the shoe and leave." She crossed her arms and walked towards the front desk, Riley trailing behind her, trying to find out why she was upset.

Caesar shook his head amusingly. "And he says he's not whipped, walking around like one love sick puppy dog."

"Lemme just record this for evidence." Hiro laughed as he pulled out his phone and began to record.

"Send that to me." Cindy told him and he nodded in agreement.

Jazmine turned to Raven and handed her a grey hoodie and sweats she had picked out. "I found this for Cairo. I haven't paid for it yet but now that you're here, you can approve of it or not. We can always put it back. Oh right and these too." She picked up a bag that held all baby clothes for her.

Raven smiled thankfully at Jazmine. "Thank you. And I like this, I'll go pay for it now." Jazmine handed back the remaining money and watched Raven walk over to the cash register, where Winston had come back with the shoe box.

"How much you wanna bet that Riley takes out a stack of money and slams it down to pay for the sneakers?" Huey smirked as he watched his brother.

"$20." Jazmine held out her hand and they shook on it.

They stood and watched Riley do exactly what Huey said he would do and Royalty crippling with embarrassing from Riley trying to show off.

Huey held out his hand and didn't even look at Jazmine. "Pay up."

She pouted as she pulled out a 20 and placed it in his hands. "That's no fun. He's your brother, you've been stuck with each other for years."

"Which means you should have none better to bet against me." He reached down and gave her a quick peck on the lips, instantly making her tuck in her bottom lip and blush. "You look cute when you blush... I am going to be so happy to do it to you more often." He mumbled against her lips, making her blush even harder.

Cindy cleared her throat behind them, irrupting their little stare off. "Sorry to stop you guys from eye fucking but Royalty looks about ready to get the fuck out of here and since we're done... I guess we can leave."

Jazmine tried her best to not look flustered and ran a hand through her hair, despite it being up in two pony tails. "Uh, right. We have the club tonight so we should get ready."

"Alright. Let's go." Huey wrapped his arm around Jazmine and pulled her close with the smirk still on his face from thinking about how he made her blush.

The whole time back to the car, Royalty was doing her best to ignore Riley but he wasn't having it while the others watched for amusement. They all knew Riley was in deep, he just wouldn't admit it to them. You could see that they were the youngest of the group, they would fight like children, then be all over each other and it was entertaining to see.

Huey felt his phone vibrate and pulled it out to see a text from his cousin. 'That was quick.' He thought as he read the text.

_Jaliyah: I got something. You're going to want to see this._

_Huey: That was quick. Thanks. Meet us at The Blue Moon tonight, we can discuss it then._

_Jaliyah: I will get Monique and Anthony to come. See you later._

_Huey: Yeah, later._

He put his phone away as they reached his car and Jazmine looked over at him.

"Everything alright?" She asked.

Huey sighed, not knowing how to answer that. "Hopefully, it is."

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have been treated once again. Put your hands together, for the one and only, Gems!" The DJ announced.

Everyone began to applaud as the four stepped out as Beyoncé - Dance for you began to play through the speakers. All four sat on the chairs, facing backwards in lingerie and tall heels showing off their body in different ways. They started off slow, grabbing all of their customers attention, making sure everyone could get a good look at them. As the chorus kicked in, they stood and walked to the centre stage, as the customers threw money to the floor in front of them. The members of the Panther's sat and watched their girls do their work with a different type of hunger in their eyes. It was different from the other men in the room as they knew that they were the only ones the girls were interested in. The other guys were just getting the attention with a price. Even then, it was near the level they were getting it on.

Diamond, Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald made their way to the four gang members and held out their hands, letting them see their perfect cleavage on display. The four happily accepted and allowed the girls to guide them to the chair they just started on. As the song progressed, they continued their slow and seductive dance. They wanted everyone to take in every detail and move they were making. Hiro, Caesar, Riley and Huey wanted to so badly to take their girl right there and then but they remembered where they were. They also wanted to touch the body that was rubbing against them but knew they weren't allowed to do that either.

The dancers straddled their 'customers' and leaned backwards, giving them full exposure of their bodies before quickly coming back up and close to their face, as if they were going to kiss them. Oh how badly they wanted to do so. They grinned on them for the last few seconds of the song before getting up and going to collect their money the crowd had flooded the stage with.

All the boys could do was slowly step off the stage, mesmerised by the performance they just got. They never got used to it. Now that they were together, they knew that they would get a happy ending from it rather than having them just walk away.

"I swear, Cindy gets sexier every time I see her." Caesar spoke in a daze.

"Ming never fails to surprise me."

"Royalty's ass best stop playing with me man." Riley breathed out, trying his best to cool himself down.

Huey didn't even need to say anything. They all knew what he was thinking. Jazmine wasn't like any other woman he had been with. She was something special and he was not letting her go. Her talents were endless.

"Ay yo cuz." He was brought out of his daydream when he heard Dante's voice. He looked over and saw his other cousins all standing behind him.

Huey turned to Caesar and Hiro who already nodded in understand. "Don't worry. We understand. Family shit. Go do you thing."

With that, Huey and Riley walked towards their cousins and acknowledged each other's. "Let's go to one of the private rooms."

As they walked to the back, they walked past all the other strippers walking around in long heels and barely any clothes on. He turned to the security guard that Raven put in place to manage the private rooms. "We need a room."

The security nodded, knowing who Huey was and pointed to a door at the end of the hall which was one of the smaller rooms. "Last door is empty. You can use that."

Just as they were about to walk to the room, Emerald and Diamond rolled up behind them in already a different outfit, more revealing to what they were wearing on stage but still covering what needed to be covered.

"Oh, uh, hi." They both nervously said. This was possibly going to be their official family in a few years and this was not the place nor the outfit to see them in.

"Hey guys, how you doing? It's been a minute huh." Monique was the first to say something.

"Yeah it has. Been a crazy few months for us all." Jazmine answered her.

"Yup. Well, I don't want to stop you from getting the bag so we'll leave you to it."

Royalty laughed. "Yeah. A girl gotta do what she gotta do to earn a little cash on the side... behind that door is a drunk bachelor party so we're about to bleed their pockets dry, deuces." She threw up a peace sign before walking into the room with the other dancer walking right behind her who sent Huey a wink before she walked in.

"How are you guys ok with what they are doing?" Jaliyah asked curiously. Not many men would allow their girl to be in this line of business so it was strange for her to see someone like her cousin to be fine with it.

Huey shrugged. "It's how I met her. Plus, she says she ready to branch out soon so I just gotta trust in the process."

"Yeah, I already told Royalty that she would never have to work a day in her life anymore but she didn't like that." Riley added, making his cousin roll her eyes.

"From the short time I have met her and seen her, I know she isn't one to just sit around." Jaliyah observed.

"It doesn't hurt to try."

Anthony cleared his throat to get their attention again. "Can we get this done with? It's a school night and I was dragged out with little information about why."

Riley smacked is lips in annoyance before advancing towards the door. "Nigga is as uptight as Huey's bitch ass."

Huey reached forward and punched his brother in the arm. "Don't start."

"Whatever. Shit never hurt."

They stepped into the room and each found their own spot.

"Wow, se ve tan lindo aquí." Monique observed as she looked around.

"It is cute isn't it. You guys did a great job, I'm surprised." Anthony agreed with his little cousin. When Monique entered their life, only Huey was fluent in Spanish but because they all wanted her to feel welcomed, they all learned how to speak Spanish too. It wasn't on a fluent level like Huey but they understood and could say some words to hold a conversation with her. "Anyway, who wants to start?"

"I'll start." Huey said and they all turned to him. "So, last night we rolled up to a house that we knew had some people Raven recognised from when she got taken so we went to get them out. As we did, she got in a fight with another female. When the female removed her mask because she started bleeding, Raven said she looked like us."

"Us? As in who?" Anthony asked confused.

"As in the trademark Freeman look. Maroon eyes and facial expression." Demetrius told him.

He looked shocked. "Damn, serious?"

The gang members of the family nodded.

"That shit is crazy... so you're saying we have a cousin or something?" Monique questioned.

"More like our parents do. Or a sister."

Silence engulfed the room as the information soaked in.

"Ok, lemme get this straight." Anthony stood and started to pace. "Raven got into a fight with a Russian who she says looks just like us and you guys think it could be grandads, uncle Ryan or aunt Cookie's daughter?"

Dante nodded. "Pretty much yeah."

"Bu- but what other evidence do you have besides Raven's eyes?"

"The mask has her blood on it, we're running the DNA on it as we speak."

"Great, more DNA results we have to wait for. Where's Maury when you need him?!" Monique spoke into the air dramatically.

"Y'all niggas need to leave a nigga alone! Shit. The test is coming next week, lemme breath." Riley complained. That's all everyone could use against him and it was getting very annoying.

"You got anything else?" Anthony asked, still trying to process what he was being told.

"I do." Jaliyah stepped up with her phone in her hand. "Huey told me to check the medical files of the family. Grandma only had 3 births, our dads. That wasn't the surprise. Aunt Cookie said her 2nd child was a still born right?" They all nodded. "Well, according to these medical records, the baby survived the birth. Her name was Jenica Freeman-Raymond. She's a couple months younger than uncle Christian."

"What?" Dante was surprised as this was the information he didn't know about. "But, why would they lie about that? Why wouldn't they tell us we had an aunt?"

"I don't know, but get this. It gets weirder." Jaliyah looked at her phone again. "Uncle Ryan signed a birth certificate 5 years after Jenica's birth to baby girl named Carmen Freeman."

"Woah woah woah. Wait a damn minute." Demetrius couldn't help but interrupted. "Another Freeman?!"

Jaliyah nodded. "Another Freeman... now, the death certificate." She trailed off.

"Death certificate?" Huey wondered out loud what they were all thinking.

"Yeah. Apparently, they both died on the same day. It doesn't say how. Carmen was 5 and Jenica was 10."

"Damn... that shit is sad. No wonder they don't bring that up." Riley shook his head sadly. He understood why they would keep it a secret, two deaths on the same day was too painful to relive.

"I thought that too but it just didn't sit right with me. The rest of the records are not as clear but their death doesn't seem right. If this woman, is a Freeman... she is either Carmen or Jenica and I know how you can prove it."

"Come on cuz, don't hog all the info being dramatic and shit."

Jaliyah rolled her eyes, she didn't have time to cuss him out. "The documents got mixed up somehow but one of them had surgery when they were a new-born because of some complications. She should have a scar going across her lower abdomen."

Huey nodded, everything was starting to piece together. "Thank you Jaliyah. Now, we wait for the DNA results. If they come back a match, then we confront our families about it. I don't want to go in full speed ahead with no evidence."

"Yeah, that makes sense." The eldest cousin agreed. "What I don't understand is, why would they hide and lie about this? And why is she siding with the enemy? It doesn't make sense."

"Trust me, I want to find out the reason for that too but for now, we need to act normal until we find out more of what we need to know. We need to build the evidence we need because I feel like we will only get one chance at confronting them about it." Huey explained.

Anthony sighed. "I hear that cuz. This is all fucked up."

"Muy jodido." Monique agreed.

"Look, its late now. I should get going. Work tomorrow."

"Yeah me too, I need to head back to college in the morning."

"I have a late start so I don't have to be in surgery until late... but I'm still tired so imma head out too."

"Me and Tri gonna hang back here for a while."

"Oh wait, before we go." Monique turned to Huey and Riley with cheeky smiles. "You guys cuffed yet."

'Cuffed?' Huey scoffed at the word. It sounded like being in a relationship was a punishment which it shouldn't be. With Jazmine, he knew it would be far from a punishment, this about to be a blessing.

"Girl mind your business." Riley squinted at his younger cousins.

"I take that as a noooo..." She then turned to Huey and smirked. "Tu silencio me dice que la respuesta es sí."

'How does my silence mean a yes?' He had to ask himself. His track star cousin was more observant than he liked.

"If that what you kids mean for having a relationship then yes."

The teen jumped up and down in excitement then pulled him into a quick hug. She removed herself from him before he had time to tense up. "I knew it! Aw, I'm so happy for you Huey." She then turned to Riley with a pitiful look on her face. "You'll get there, don't worry."

Riley threw up his hands in frustration and stormed out the room. "All your niggas need to hop off my dick! Violating me for no fucking reason! I'm tired."

The twins burst out in laughter before chasing after him to try and calm him down. He had been picked on all day and it was hilarious to see to everyone but him. The girls walked ahead while Anthony and Huey stood behind.

"You really think she could be family?"

Huey slightly nodded. "The evidence is there and building. Can't deny that."

"I know but this shit is just crazy right? There couldn't really be another Freeman and with the enemy? Something isn't right."

"Yeah... it's not. And before you ask, yes, I know what I'm doing with Jazmine. Yes, I know the things I need to do to ensure to protect her this time. Yes, I am getting her and her friends' weapons and giving them fighting lessons. I got this shit handled this time Tony. Ain't nobody going to try and fuck with them again." Huey listed off the answers to the questions he knew where about to come his way. He had no time to be asked the question one by one so answered them all at once.

Anthony smiled in satisfaction and patted Huey on the back. "Great. That's my work done. Later Hu." With that, the married man made his way through half naked woman and customers, avoiding eye contact with all of them like the good husband and father he was.

There were times when Huey had to remember that he's not the oldest. He acted like the oldest but he wasn't. The few months apart sometimes had little impact on how they acted towards each and others but there were other times in serious situations when everyone looks to Anthony for guidance. Huey didn't mind it, he had a whole gang of people looking at him for guidance, a little family dilemma was something Anthony could easily handle. In this scenario, Huey had to take charge. He discovered this information in his business so he needed to find out more about what was going on, he would just fill the rest in as he learned more. Also, the fact that she was dealing with the enemy was a big problem, if she was family. The Russian's and the Panther's had a past, and Huey was trying to keep it like that, the past. He wanted to make sure they never dared to step back in Chicago and ruin the streets the way they did again. He was going to put a stop to that very soon.

So, if this woman was Jenica or Carmen Freeman, what the hell was she doing with the Russians?!

* * *

**Finally got this chapter out sooner rather than later. This is the most words I have done for this story so far yaay, managed to finis this at 5:30am. I know there were a lot of info to take in so I hopefully it wasn't too confusing. Remember to drop reviews about what you think about this chapter.**

**I hope everyone is staying safe. First it was about rona now that bitch been put on hold because racism wanted to make headlines again smh. I'm tired. This black female is tirreeeddd. The system is fucked but we will fuck it up this time and make it ours, I don't care. BLACK LIVES MATTER and if you think any different... bye. Say all their names (don't forget our black woman), donate if you can, sign petitions, attend protests. Do what you can, your voice means something, no matter your age (I mean voting is a lil different but you know what I mean). I'm here in London and we're protesting to have our systems changed too. Police kill black men and women too, the media is just good at hiding it. Trust me when I say the UK is not innocent and we got shit to fight too.**

**Now I'm not trying to rant you guys ear off so imma stop now. Just do what you have to do.**

**Chel29: Girl me too. Death scares the shit out of me and I am thankful no one close to me has passed because I KNOW I will crash terribly. I am very emotional. (Yes yes, imma 're not always emotional ok). With Jayden and Erica... we just gotta wait and see what happens with them. Royalty and Riley are a lovely mess right no lool. They will find a way to work (hopefully) and I think a lot of people are hoping for a negative result but will it be? Finally, THANK YOU. To be honest, I have been reading for a few years now, kinda off and on but then one day last year, I decided to write my own two and here we are. I have the other on WattPad but I'm not trying to overwhelm myself with too much. If I can randomly come up with a different plot, I may think of a future story I could do. Thank you for your constant support on both apps, I couldn't be more happy.**

**BoondocksFever234: Hopefully this wasn't too long of a wait lool. Let's hope one day Jazmine sees Huey's stiff shoulders and helps him out in a way or two *wink**wink*. This relationship has finally started and I am going to have fun with this. And ayyy, island girl yes! I wanna go Trinidad so bad for carnival. 2022 maybe? Gotta start saving from nooow. I just love Caribbean culture, I love us (I'm from London but family is Jamaican). I was trying my best to find my inna yardie to write that piece lool. And you are right on point, the world really said fuck 2020, having this mess. We will get through it, thank you for the prayers, prayers to you too.**

**Bulmas Ego: Glad to see you've caught up lool. I read you story piece by piece, don't worry I'm catching up. I've just had so much to do lately as we all probably going through ourselves.**

**GREENPEACE1990: Welcome to the crazy world I some how managed to create haha.**

**malevolentedge: Thank you, I hope you enjoyed this chapter too.**

**ladyrere1985: As and you shall receive.**

**Damn, that was a lot. Remember to drop them reviews. A lot happened in this chapter so I know you guys have sum to say bout it.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	35. Chapter 35: Self-defense

Friday morning had rolled around and the girls were up bright and early. Well, almost bright.

"Ugh, why do we have to be there so early? Can't they wait until the sun actually relaxes in the sky for a second?" Cindy complained.

"There's no sun today." Jazmine informed her as she had already checked the weather for the day.

"Even worse!"

"I feel you... early mornings in winter are the worse! I hate cold weather." Royalty yawned and rubbed her eyes.

Ming shook her head. "You two are grown ass woman who can't even get up in the morning. I am ashamed."

"Ugh! Shut up Ming. Damn. Not everyone is an early bird like you and Jazmine."

"Yeah, me and Royalty are night owls. We don't do this rise and shine shit."

Jazmine grabbed both of the girl's arms and began to drag them out the house. They tried to push their feet into the ground to stop Jazmine from being able to pull them but Ming was right behind them to push on their backs, helping Jazmine. "Thanks Ming! Lazy girls."

What felt like forever, they finally managed to get into the car and drive away from their house.

"I can't believe we're going their willingly without an escort." Royalty spoke from the backseat.

"I know, it's like a secret location that no one knows about." Jazmine nodded next to her.

Cindy pushed back up the mirror after checking to make sure her two braids were still neat, even though it was about to get messy. This style was always her signature growing up when she wasn't forced to have her hair in 'girly' styles and she actually missed wearing it that way. "I mean it's not really secret if we know about it."

"It still kinda is because not everyone knows about. Only a selected few. We just got lucky." Ming pointed out as she pulled up to the location in question.

Jazmine saw how quickly the area changed as she kept her eyes glued outside. "The way this all just changed is crazy. I never remembered it looking like this."

"Well last time, we were either knocked out sleep or driving away deep in thought about what the fuck we were about to do with our lives since we were leaving Chicago." Royalty said to her.

The group of girls had made their way to the warehouse that belonged to The Panthers in full work out gear in the early morning. Today was the first day of physical training they were going to go through. They had no idea what to expect since this training was really about how to defend themselves in a possible life or death situation which was intense to think about. They didn't want to get kidnapped ever again in their lives, that's a fact. That was the worst thing they had to experience, they never wanted to go through something remotely similar to that ever again.

They knew the training was going to be intense, their respective partners had warned them about it before hand because they wanted their girl to be prepared as much as they could. Of course they were going to do better at protecting their girl this time around, that's for sure but they still wanted them to defend themselves and not rely on a man to help them. The first time they saw who they really were, was when Jazmine came flying in and kicking their old boss off his chair, Royalty throwing him back in his chair as if he weighed nothing, then the cherry on top was when they slammed his head against the desk. The girls were tough, that's for sure. They knew not to underestimate them, they would be stupid for doing so.

"Wait, how we getting in?" Jazmine asked as they stepped out the car. They looked around the area and saw Huey and Caesar's car was there as well as a few others.

"Hiro told me the password to get in." Ming held up her phone on the open messages of her and Hiro's conversation.

"Aww look at all them red hearts." Royalty teased her friend as she looked at the messages on the phone.

Ming snatched her phone away from prying eyes. Her friends could see the light blush that formed on her face. "Nosy." Was all she could say to them.

"Don't be ashamed. It's cute." Jazmine winked at her.

"Whatever." Ming rolled her eyes and did her best to try and recover from the embarrassment. She was in front of the girls as she knew how they were going to get inside and knocked on the door. They heard nothing then a static voice from somewhere they didn't know.

"Password."

"R.E.D.S." Ming answered.

A few seconds later, the door opened and a large man stood there with a blank facial expression. "You may enter." He stepped to the side and let them in.

"Thank you."

Cindy looked at Ming curiously. "What does that stand for?" She asked, referring to the password.

"Ruby, Emerald, Diamond and Sapphire aka R.E.D.S. Hiro said that if we ever needed to come here for whatever reason, that is the password we will use to get inside." Ming explained to them all which they all nodded in understanding. They didn't expect for them to have something like their own password to get into a place like this but it did make them feel special. They really went through the trouble of coming up with something easy for the girls to remember that only they will know and then inform their security of the new password added and what the four girls who can use the word look like. Things seemed to be getting serious.

They made their way inside and there were already a few people in there. They looked at the girls confused, wondering who they were and what they were doing there.

"They are probably so confused right now. I don't blame them." Cindy commented as they stopped in the middle of the main room. It was true, they were whispering and looking over their way. They were wondering if these girls were joining the gang but they also didn't look like they were.

"Ming!"

Hearing her name, Ming and the other girls looked over to Hiro standing by a door with a large grin on his face. He waved them over and they walked towards him. As they got closer, he pulled his girlfriend in a hug and kissed her forehead, making the other gang members have somewhat of an idea of who these new girls were. "I see you made it here alright."

Ming nodded. "Yup, it wasn't hard to get here which I guess should be worrying."

Hiro laughed through his nose. "Trust me, anyone trying to cause trouble here will be dealt with in seconds. That's a guarantee, you're all safe here." He reassured them all. "Now let's get down to business."

He stepped out the way and allowed them to enter the room first and as they did, they were in awe at what they saw. Majority of the room was covered with mats with punching bags and various weapons on the sides, some looking very deadly. In the middle of the room stood Huey, Riley, Caesar, Raven and two other girls.

"Hey, you guys ready for some training?!" Raven asked excitedly.

"Couldn't it have been at a later time?" Royalty moaned as she walked over to where Riley was standing.

"Nope! The earlier the better." She grinned.

"We're going to be so sore after this..." Jazmine mumbled but Huey was the only one to hear.

He leaned down to her ear and whispered softly. "If you do, I know a way to make you feel better."

Jazmine could hear the flirtatious tone in his voice, causing her to blush.

"Huey! Keep your dick in your pants, we got training to do." Raven lectured him. "As a matter of fact, that goes for all of you. Let's start off with some warm up and stretches."

Everyone broke off in their own spaces and started to warm up.

"How did you find the journey?" Huey asked, trying to engage in basic conversation with his girlfriend. Girlfriend. Yeah, he still didn't believe it.

Jazmine shrugged as she stretched her arms. "Fairly easy. Cute little password you made for us."

"That was Hiro actually."

"Either way, it was a good one. We will definitely remember it for next time."

Huey sighed before moving to stretch his legs. "I'm trying to keep you from needing to come back here, only on these special occasions. I don't want to make it a habit."

She shrugged. She understood why he would say that, she felt that way too. Their relationship was new so they had to learn about each other's boundaries even though it was already pushed from the moment they met. He had to understand that she was still going to be a stripper while they were together for however long she was planning on doing so. He couldn't rush her or force her to think about her second option in life because that wasn't his job, at least not yet or as intense. He was there to support her in any decision she made to better herself. He didn't want her to feel as if she needed to change her career to please him, he wanted her to do it because she wants to. When that time came, he will make it aware that she had his full support.

Jazmine had to understand that Huey was a leader of a gang leader that practically ran the streets of Chicago. His name was known, his family was known, he had a reputation to uphold. It was never going to be easy. There was going to be sleepless nights from her sitting up waiting for him and enemies at every turn like she had experienced already. This was his lifestyle and she would have to do her best to adapt around it. They had to learn to adapt and build together if they really wanted the relationship to work and they did. They sacrificed so much already, there was no turning back for them, this was the end game. They knew their friends felt the same way with each other too.

"I understand." Jazmine walked forward and wrapped her arms around Huey's torso. He lifted his arm and wrapped it around her shoulder, pulling her closer.

"Ladies, you ready?" Raven asked, causing the two to break out of their little moment.

The four dancers nodded and walked over to Raven.

"This is Mirror and this Lily." Raven pointed to the two girls behind her. They all had workout clothes on, making them realise that they were joining in on their training.

Cindy looked at them strangely. "What kind of fucking name is Mirror?" She couldn't help but to say. It sounded rude but it was just her way of asking.

The Arabian girl they guessed was called Lily spoke up first. "Because her dumb ass wouldn't stop staring at one since high school."

Mirror, a Latina, screwed her eyebrows at her long-time friend. "Wow, you make me sound vain."

Lily looked at her in disbelief. "Your name is literally Mirror, that's pretty fucking vain."

"Whatever."

"Ay yo Lily, Mirror, let's get down to business ok?" Raven interrupted the girls.

"Yeah sorry." They apologized. Seeing how quick Raven managed to get them back to being serious made them realise that Raven was a big deal around here. She held authority and the girls seemed to respect her. Raven was definitely not one to play with.

Raven rubbed and then clapped her hands together, grabbing everyone's attention. "Alright, fighting! What you got?"

The group of friends looked at each other while their boyfriends stood to the side and let Raven take lead.

"I mean, slapped a couple hoes here and there." Cindy spoke first.

"When we say slap, we mean more punch because ya know, better impact and damage." Ming added.

"Just depends on the day." Royalty shrugged.

"And the hoe we fighting." Jazmine finished off.

Raven nodded, taking in the information and trying to bring it into training. "Ok, I see. Cindy, I want you to fight Mirror and Ming, I want you to fight Lily."

The boys stepped backwards to allow them to have space to fight, even if the room had enough space further from them. Cindy and Ming looked at each other confused then back at Raven.

"Fight? As in, right now fight?"

"Yup." She pointed at Ming and then Cindy. "The Asian is Ming, blonde is Cindy. Start at 50%." She instructed to Mirror and Lily who nodded in understanding.

Ming and Cindy slowly walked backwards as the two girls walked towards them. "Wait, but I'm not even that angry to be fighting them."

"Doesn't matter, sometimes you just have to fight for the sake of fighting... but for the sake of this, they keep trying it with your man even when he staying faithful and constantly telling her no. They also stole some money from you" Raven quickly set up a scenario, hoping it might help them.

"This should be good." Caesar laughed to himself. He wanted to see what his girl could do.

"Ite..." Cindy looked at her opponent and started to size her up. They were both roughly the same height and build so it shouldn't be that hard, right?

Cindy send a punch to Mirror who dodged effortlessly so she swung again and again but paused when she felt a palm connected with her face. Cindy looked at the girl who had a large smirk on her face. "You did not?"

Mirror smirked. "But I did. I guess all blondes are dumb."

Cindy's eyes turned to slits. She hated being called dumb it was one of her pet peeves. "Bitch!"

From there, Ming decided to try and fight her own opponent while Cindy continued what she was doing. They both were sending pretty powerful swings which some landed but a lot missed. Suddenly, Cindy managed to tackle Mirror to the ground making everyone watch even more intensely.

"Damn." Caesar muttered. He knew Cindy was strong but actually seeing her fight was something.

Cindy managed to punch Mirror twice in the face before Mirror managed to kick her off just seconds later, much to Cindy's shock.

"Royalty, Jazmine, jump in." Raven told the two girls standing on the side.

They looked at her shocked. "Hold on, us? If me and Roy jump in its 4 against 2."

"No fight is ever even in our work. Plus, this should be easier for you then."

Jazmine was nervous as fuck. Out of all her friends, she wasn't the fighter. Yeah, she could smack a bitch and win but this was different. She was going to jump a group of girls she had no business jumping and it was uneven. She was the calmer one of the group who prefer to resolve arguments than sending hands. Don't get it twist, she will still beat someone up if seemed necessary, she just did her best to avoid fights.

Raven saw the underlying look of concern on Huey's face and rolled her eyes. "She'll be fine, I told them to only go 50%." She turned to Royalty and Jazmine. "Well? Let's go girls."

The two sighed but stepped up, Ming now had Jazmine by her side while Cindy had Royalty.

"This girl is kicking my ass at 50%. Shit, I need to do better for myself." Ming breathed out as she looked at Lily who was only a little red in the face from when Ming punched her.

"Let's go." Lily called to her now two, opponents. She was ready to continue even if Ming looked as if she was done.

"Wait... move to 75%." Raven told them, making Huey's eyes go wide.

"Raven-"

"There are people out there that are not going to be holding back. Its training for a reason, they have to learn how to take a punch that has years of experience behind it, at least. Trust in the process Huey."

The fighting started up again and this was more high speed. There were more people involved which meant that Mirror and Lily had to think about what they were doing more. They knew they had to hold back while also put up a fight and their opponents wasn't doing bad. They managed to land a couple of punches and kicks but it was nothing they couldn't handle.

Mirror dropped down low and swiped Cindy's legs who dropped on her back before grabbing Royalty's arm and flipping her onto her back. Once she realised what she did, she instantly felt bad.

"Ay! What the fuck was that?!" Riley shouted at her as he raced over to Royalty who was laying on the floor. Caesar was right behind him to go over to Cindy who was lying on the floor too.

"Bloodclaut..." Royalty muttered as she squeezed her eyes shut.

Raven didn't need to tell the other girls to stop as they already did to make sure Cindy and Royalty were ok. "You girls good?"

"Yeah." They nodded as they sat up.

"You hurt?" Caesar asked Cindy.

She shook her head. "Nah. I mean a little stinging but I'll be good."

"How you feeling Royalty?"

Royalty rubbed her lower back as she looked up at Riley. "My whole life flashed before my eyes."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. It was just instinctive." Mirror apologised nervously as she looked at the younger Freeman's face. Riley looked as if he was going to kill her.

"It's cool. No hard feelings." Cindy told her. With the help of her boyfriend, she managed to stand on her two feet.

"Glad to hear that."

Raven took a deep breath. "Alright, you girls did good for ya know, a regular fight. No offence."

"None taken." Jazmine muttered with her hands on her hips. As she said before, fighting was not her strong point.

"But with time and training, you'll be skilled in basic self-defence and fighting. How far you wanna go after the basics, is up to you. Now to the actual training."

"The fact that we just started and I'm already hot." Ming fanned herself.

"I'll put on the air conditioning." Hiro said out loud before walking over to thermostat.

"You got air conditioning in here?!"

"Yup!"

Raven cleared her throat, making the attention fall back on her. She was surprised that Huey hadn't interrupted her teaching to say something or to overtake but he seemed to be trusting her at the moment so she continued.

"Alright, so just a little background on all of us. I have been doing boxing since I was about 12 years old, Riley been doing it since he was 10. Hiro is a black belt in karate. Caesar is brown belt in karate and has a background doing boxing. Now Huey, whew, the boy got a list of things. Kung fu, karate, ninjutsu, boxing, taekwondo, the works. I can't be bothered to remember the rest, he's too much." Everyone laughed while Huey just rolled his eyes.

"Every one of them have been useful."

"Ok Mr Showoff." Raven waved her hands in the air dramatically before going back on subject. "When you fight someone, there are different parts of the body to hit. Some of the most effective body parts to hit is the eyes, nose, neck, groin and knees. The groin being my favourite when I would fight Riley." Raven smirked.

Riley smacked his mouth, annoyed that she brought that up. "That's 'cuz your ass be cheating and not fighting like a real nigga like me."

"Maybe because I'm not a real nigga Riley! Damn, throwing me off... where was I? Oh yeah, dick hits."

The boy's eyes widened when the heard that line.

Caesar put his hands over his groin and looked at his girlfriend with wide eyes. "You better not."

"I mean... I might have to." Cindy smirked before turning to Hiro. "Ay yo Hiro, don't piss off my girl. She did kick ball for a living back in China. Broke people's bones while doing that shit too."

Hiro looked at his girlfriend shocked. "I don't remember hear about this."

"I mean... anyway, continue Raven." Ming turned away from Hiro who face dropped when she looked away. This girl was going to continue to surprise him.

"Yeah so, those are the parts you would want to hit. Now let's get down to the specifics. Huey?"

Raven stepped to the side and allowed Huey to speak. He had been quiet for a long time and it was time for him to actually step in and help. He said he was going to allow Raven to train them but he couldn't help but to be there and help too.

"There are different ways you can take someone down that throws a punch at you. Like so." Huey sent a quick jab to Raven who dodged, grabbed a hold of his shirt, swung her leg behind his and threw him to the ground. As he landed, he decided to just to lie there instead of jumping back up to show how the skill would leave a person on the ground. "And that's just one way of doing it." He looked over at the girls who all looked like they were paying attention which was good to see. He rolled back and got back on his feet. "Or you could do this." Huey turned and sent another punch at Raven but this time with almost like lightning speed. Somehow, she managed to step to the side and punched him straight in the jaw.

Instinctively, Jazmine gasped and ran over to him. "Huey! You alright? That looked like it hurt!"

He shrugged but couldn't take the smirk off his face. "It's fine, I've been hit harder."

"Ohhhhh." The room instigated.

"Nigga called you weak."

"What did you just say?" Raven squinted her eyes at him as she started to threateningly move towards him.

Huey's smirk just grew bigger as he started to step backwards, making sure Jazmine was out the way. "I've been hi-" He dodged when he saw a punch coming his way and stepped around Raven.

He started to bounce on his toes as Raven did the same. "You're such an idiot." She told him but he just shrugged. She ran forward and tried to kick Huey but he grabbed her leg. That didn't stop her. She jumped and turned, kicking him right in the throat before he could react. He dropped her leg and she got back in her stance. "See ladies, the throat is a good spot to hit."

"Fair play." Huey slightly rubbed his neck, not expecting that. "Anyway... When Raven punched me in the jaw, that is something you can do if you manage to dodge a punch successfully since they are left open. You could even knee them in the stomach but I suggest you just punch them somewhere on their upper body or getting behind them, kicking them in the back, making them stumble and running." The girls nodded as they listened. "Try any one I just showed you."

Ming looked at Hiro and barely blinked before seeing his fist coming her way. She just about dodged under it. That's when she decided to run behind him and kick him in the back, making him stumble forward. He turned with a large grin on his face. "Good."

Cindy looked at Caesar as they walked in a circle. She studied his hands and feet, waiting to see what he was going to do. That's when she saw him step forward and throw a punch at her. She moved out the way and kneed him in the stomach, making him bend over in slight pain. Her eyes widened. "Shit, I'm sorry." All she got in return was a thumbs up. She kinda felt bad now.

Jazmine looked up at Huey. Her 5-foot-5 self against his 6 foot 2, muscular build was not something she would think she would ever be able to over power. "Don't overthink it Jazmine, just react the best way you think is possible." She nodded and took a deep breath. Huey took a step forward to punch her. She managed to step to the side and punch him in the same jaw Raven hit. Huey heard her gasp and saw her large eyes stare at him concerningly but he just smirked. "I'm good. You did good. Again."

Riley threw a punch at Royalty who managed to dodge, step behind him while getting a hold of his shirt, hook her legs behind him and threw him on the floor. What she didn't expect was him to pull her on top of him. "You so nasty. Can't do shit right." She laughed at him.

Huey sighed and stopped what he was doing once he saw the youngest of the group laughing together. "I think that's enough of that now and your kind of in the next position I wanted to talk about."

"Oop, Jazzy get your mans, he talking freaky." Royalty teased as she moved off Riley, much to his disappointment.

Huey rolled his eyes while everyone else just laughed. "Not like that. Raven, you wanna take this?"

She nodded and stepped forward as Royalty and Riley stood and got out the way. Riley never let the smile drop from his face as he swung his arm around Royalty's shoulder's as they watched Raven take the next part.

"Ok, Lily, I want you to straddle me." Lily nodded and waited until Raven was laying on her back before straddling her. "What I am about to show you is how to get out of someone being on top of you in two different ways, for whatever reason doesn't matter, whether they are simply attacking you or trying to assault you, you just know you don't want to be there. One thing you can do if they are holding onto your wrist is to stop struggling and when you feel the person loosen their grip, that's when you attack." Raven advised them, making them nod. "So, what you gonna wanna do is thrust your pelvis up, which will make them kind of drop on top of you, then grab on arm, making them lose balance and you quickly flip them onto their back so you're on top. Then you can punch them or get up and run." Raven did step by step slowly so the girls could see and understand what she was talking about. "Try it."

The next five minutes, the dancers tried it out with their partners until they had a basic understanding of the move. At first it was a bit weird because their minds kept drifting off into a very dirty place but once they got their heads wrapped around that idea and imagined it being someone they did not consent to, they managed to get serious.

"Good I like what I'm seeing." Raven praised. "Now I'm going to show you what to do if someone is between your legs." Lily moved so she was between Raven's legs. "When you're like this, the best thing you want to do is kick them away. You can do this by wedging your knee between you and them like so and then getting your other leg to kick them off or in the face. The other thing you can do is grab their forearm, then move your other hand to cross it across to the side of the neck furthest away from you. Put one foot in their pelvis, pivot to the side, the other foot you put it basically deep in their armpit so your foot rest on their shoulder. The leg you put in the pelvis, that is going to come around and hook their neck between your legs. Lock your heels, grab their wrist, then you should be able to push them down and hold onto their wrist tight. To break their arm, all you need to do is lift your hips up and pull and just like that, pop!" Raven explained slowly and as best as she could. She stopped and waited to make sure they were on the same page but it didn't take long because Hiro, Caesar, Riley and Huey were helping when they saw any of them struggling. She was proud of the progress being made already. "Ok, so this is if someone is sitting between your legs. You guys are doing a good job so far. I like what I'm seeing."

She stood and walked around as she watched Ming, Cindy, Royalty and Jazmine try out the different techniques. They seemed to be handling it well which was good to see, it meant they could learn and move on to more technical and difficult things. She could see Huey was pleased with the amount of progress being made today too.

A few more minutes went by and Huey stood, helping up Jazmine at the same time who was grateful for the help. "Alright, we going to take a 20-minute break."

Hearing this made the dancers collapsed on the floor in exhaustion dramatically.

"Finally!" Cindy shouted.

"Why is it so bloodclaut hard fi protect myself?" Royalty cussed.

Riley poked her in the stomach, making her giggle. "Girl stop playing. You and Christina over there being so extra for no reason."

"Extra?! Nigga this shit is hard! You only saying that because you've been doing this for years." Royalty lightly kicked him in the leg before sticking out her tongue, earning her one back.

"Wait Cin, did he just call you Christiana? As in Christina Aguilera?" Ming burst out in laughter.

"I mean... she did dance to her song that one time." Caesar agreed but shut his mouth when he saw Cindy's piercing blue eyes piecing into his soul.

"He calls me Mariah, join the club." Jazmine sighed. She looked up and saw Huey's disappointed facial expression. "Don't look at me like that Huey! No one can be amazingly fit and skilled in fighting like you, you, ninja."

"I feel like that was supposed to replace another word." Hiro mumbled to Caesar who nodded in agreement.

"We've only just started, just to warn you. Anyway, we have something to show you. Well, Royalty, Cindy and Ming."

By now Lily and Mirror were off having their own conversation so the ones that wasn't the top of the gang looked confused.

"What's that?" Cindy asked.

"Yeah, what do we have that Jazmine doesn't?" Ming quested as she walked hand in hand with Hiro.

"Well you gotta come to see." Raven smirked.

"Cindy when you opening up that gym? I think we need it more than ever." Jazmine told her friend with a pout on her friend.

"You wanna open up your own gym?" Hiro asked.

Cindy nodded. "Yeah, that old gym that closed down, I wanna buy and rebuild. Going to have about 4 courts at first then as time goes on I wanna add a gym and swimming pool. As well as hopefully starting up my own basketball team. I just need ya girl here to start her interior designer shit and help a bitch out."

"You know I got you, we starting business soon baby girl. Be ready." Ming pointed at her and the two nodded at each other in understanding.

They walked out the training room and walked to another room. They entered the room to see a young boy leaning over a car seat and Baby Shark playing in the background.

"I know you lying, boy you going to get my son addicted." Raven shook her head and walked over to the car seat. The boy sat back to allow Raven to reach in and pick up the baby. "Cairo look who's here?!" She turned so he could face the people she came in with. At first, he looked lost but then showed off his gum smile.

"Aww he so cute." Royalty cooed as she walked up to him. "Hi Cairo!"

"He's just so adoraablleee. We have the same eyes! Green eyes gang." Jazmine giggled from next to Royalty.

"Oh hey Ghost." Pedro smiled nervously.

Huey nodded in acknowledgement. "You done what I need?"

"Yeah of course." He slid his chair over to a draw and pulled out a black tray to hand to his boss.

"Thanks." He cleared his throat, getting the girls attention away from the baby. "So, as you may know now, Jazmine has a tracker on her necklace. Pedro, show them." Pedro turned to the computer and began to type on the keypad. A few seconds later, the males in the room, besides Cairo, name popped up.

"Look my name there." Jazmine pointed to the spot that said 'Emerald'.

"Where is you guys trackers?" Royalty asked.

"In the back of our necks." Riley answered for her.

"Ew."

"Which is why, the choice is yours, we want to give you trackers but in the form of jewellery like Jazmine's. This way, if we happen to part ways, you won't have to cut something out of your skin to get away from us." Huey explained to them.

"Yeah I could go without seeing a knife." Ming shivered.

"It's not that bad with some numbing cream or spray." Raven shrugged before going back to changing Cairo's diaper which no one even noticed.

"So, what do you say?" Caesar held his arms out, waiting for a reply.

Royalty, Cindy and Ming looked at each other then back at the boys. "Ok, what we got?"

Huey handed the box over to Riley first and stepped next to Jazmine.

"Do you know what they got?" Jazmine asked. She knew she was about to see but she wanted to know.

Huey smirked at her and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her in close. It was clear to see the two couldn't get enough of each other. "You gotta wait and see baby."

Baby. He knew what he was doing by saying that. She had every right to slap him upside his head for making her body tingly in public like that. It was rude and she couldn't do anything about it now. She might have to take a detour to his house to punish him.

"Ite so look." Riley started, making Royalty roll her eyes. "A nigga got this for you or whatever." He opened the box before pulling out a silver piece of jewellery. "Issa ankle bracelet since I know you like wearing them and I haven't seen you take them hoes off."

"I mean, my grandma said it meant for hoes so there might be a reason I like it so much." She joked, making the room lightly laugh. She too the item and inspected it, reading what was on the plate. "Wait, how you know about 876?"

Riley looked and talked nonchalantly but inside, he was jumping for joy that he could see she liked it. "I remember when you told me that 876 was the area code in Jamaica and that you were gonna get it tatted so I put it on there."

"Aww that's so sweet... I'm still getting it tatted tho."

"Shit, ion mind as long as you like it."

"Yeah I definitely do." Royalty grinned before moving over to put the anklet on with the help of Riley.

Caesar received the box from Riley. "Alright, a real nigga turn."

"Nigga you wish."

"Sure, whatever." Caesar rolled his eyes and then grinned at Cindy. "I got a lil sum sum for you." He reached into the box and pulled out a gold charm bracelet for her. "For you my gurl."

Cindy allowed Caesar to clip the bracelet around her wrist before looking over it. "You love giving me bracelets don't you?"

"I meaann that little blue string was just the beginning." There were two charms already attached to it. One was the letter C and the other was a basketball. "As time goes on, imma buy you more to add to it."

"Thanks Caes." Cindy hugged him before going to watch Ming receive her gift.

"Now, don't freak out, it's not what it looks like." Ming looked at him confused when he warned her but understood when he pulled out a simple, gold, ruby ring. "As I said, not what it looks like. Trust me, when that day comes, it's going to bigger and fancier."

Ming watch Hiro slip it onto her ring finger on the right hand. "Which is why it's on right hand and not left, not yet baby."

"Aww." Jazmine pouted as she leaned into Huey's arms.

"Thanks Hiro, I love it and I'll make sure it stays on." Ming threw her arms around his shoulders and pulled him into a tight hug.

Pedro whipped away his fake tears. "So beautiful."

Raven shook her head at him but she couldn't help but agree. It was a nice thing to witness.

"Show them Pedro." Huey told him, breaking everyone out of their own little bubble.

After a couple of typing later, 'Diamond', 'Ruby' and 'Sapphire' all popped up on the screen in the same location as the others.

"I have never had a tracker before... so cool." Cindy grinned.

"It has its pros and cons." Raven sighed before looking at the time. "He's due for a feed and nap."

"I got it from here." Huey stepped up, knowing she had to take care of her responsibilities, making Raven nod in thanks.

Royalty's eyes grew wide. "Wait, we're actually going to do more?!"

"Yes." The boys all answered at once.

Jazmine's face dropped. "We're going to end up crawling home at this rate ain't we?"

"Pretty much."

"Damn straight."

"Nope!" Ming tried to run away but Hiro managed to catch her. He threw her over his shoulder while she struggled to get down. "Hiro! Put me down!"

"Nope!" He laughed at her struggling.

Cindy looked at Caesar who gave her a 'don't even try it' look. She sighed. "I'll walk..."

With that, they couples and almost couple walked back to the training room to continue their training that was going to drain them. They couldn't believe that they have only just started the day. All they knew was that they were going to sleep good tonight.

* * *

It was lunch time and Coco was playing with her cousin, Tay on the swings.

"Tay, I can't wait for our birthday next week!" Coco spoke excitedly.

Tay nodded in agreement. "Yeah! Mommy and daddy said they are getting us a special cake."

In the following week, Tay was turning 5 and Coco was turning 4. The cousins just so happened to be born on the same day but a year apart. Since Coco was now staying with Anthony, they decided to give the girls a joint birthday party which they were both thrilled about. They talked about it every day since they got told they could have the party.

"Mom got our outfits but she's hiding it so we don't see it."

"Aww I wish we could see now."

"Well I know mine is going to be really cool and I get face paint." Tay grinned. When it came to being creative, she couldn't stop talking about it. It was her favourite thing to do.

Coco pouted. "Do you think I can too?"

"Yeah! Mom can do yours too!"

"Ok!"

The two cousins played on the swings talking about random things a 3 and 4 year old would talk about, both off in their own world.

"Psst!"

"Psst!"

Coco and Tay looked around confused.

"What's that?" Tay asked.

Coco shrugged.

"Psst!"

They gasped. "I heard it again!"

"Freeman!"

Hearing their last name, the two searched harder to the source of the noise. Seconds later, Tay locked eyes on an older man dressed in all black.

"Um, Coco... look at that creepy man." Tay pointed to the person in question.

The man saw he had got the attention from the two girls he was looking for. He had no idea what their names were besides their last name and he was glad that the first children he got the attention from was the right ones he was looking for. At least they knew what their last name was, otherwise this plan wouldn't have worked.

He waved the two over to the gate while also looking out for anyone that could catch him out.

"Do you think we should go over there?" Coco asked, as she titled her head to the side.

Tay shook her head. "Daddy says stranger danger. Don't trust grown white men trying to talk to me."

"Freeman!" The man called again, this time more harshly. He needed to get out of there.

Coco pulled her older cousin off the swing. "Come on, he might be friendly. He might know daddy." In Coco's mind, she thought that this man could be her father's friend since he also dressed in black and knew her last name. He had to be friendly right?

"Finally." The man mumbled under his breath but put on a large smile once the girls got closer. "Hey there Freeman's."

He looked at the two girls and could see what people talked about. The family genes were strong which made it easier to find them.

"Do you know our daddy?" Tay asked cautiously.

"Something like that."

"So you know he beat people up."

The man had to lean back in surprise. He didn't expect the child to say something like that but then again, she was a child, their mouths didn't have filters and minds had endless amounts of imagination.

"Yeah but I'm a friendly person. Me and your dads are... friends." He saw the girls weren't very convinced and panicked. "Uh, hey! I got a gift for you." He pulled out a small blue box that had a padlock on the front. "Well, for when you bring it home to your dad."

Coco gasped. "Did you know it was our birthday?!"

The man raised an eyebrow, amused at the coincidence. "Yeah, sure, whatever kid. Happy birthday or whenever. Just make sure that you take this straight home and show no one. No teachers. If you do, they will take it away from you and never give it back ok? It's important that you make it home with that."

Tay looked at the man in suspicion. "I don't trust you... you're weird."

"I'm not weird!" He shouted, getting flashback to middle school and people always calling him weird. The girls jumped back scared and the man realised what he done. "Sorry sorry. Look, take this. It's my sorry present now." He found the lifted piece of fence and slipped the box under.

Coco reached down and picked up. The two girls leaned close as she shook the box. They could hear something moving. "I can hear it."

Tay looked at the front of the box. "Why is there a lock?"

"Because I put it on there." The man answered with a large smile on his face. He did what he needed to do, he wanted to leave now.

"Why?"

"Because I wanted to."

"Why?"

"So it can stay a surprise."

She huffed. "Do I have to say why again? I'm not a baby."

The man screwed his eyes at Tay, trying to intimate her but she surprising stood her ground as Coco looked on.

"Well from my position, you look like a baby."

"Well maybe you should get glasses."

He was shocked. She was no more than 5 but talked as if she was 15. Who was raising this child? She shouldn't be able to talk the way she did. "Listen here you little shit- ow!"

"You said a bad word!" Coco managed to reached through the fence when he wasn't looking and pinched his arm.

He began to rub his arm frustratedly. This was supposed to be an easy drop off. "You mothe-"

The bell signally lunch rang through the playground and the younger children started to run inside. Coco and Tay turned to watch their friends run inside.

"We have to- where he go?" Coco looked around confused. The man they were talking to was gone.

"I don't like him." Tay told her cousin truthfully.

"Well, he got us a present."

"So?"

"Tay! Coco! Come to class now!" Their teacher called them over before Tay could reply.

Coco hide the box as best as she could in her pocket. "Put it in your bag." Tay advised her cousin. Coco nodded before the two took off to run back to their lesson, the man long forgotten in their minds.

* * *

"I'm home!" Anthony announced as he stepped inside his home.

"Daddy!"

"Uncle Tony!"

He kneeled down to catch them both in a hug before standing up with both in his arms. "Wow, you're both becoming big girls, aren't you?"

"Yeah, 'member it's our birthday uncle Tony!" Coco answered. Ever since she started staying with Anthony, she started to call him uncle despite being her second cousin. He then decided to tell Coco and Tay that they should call his cousins aunt and uncle. They were all close enough to be siblings so it just fit for them to say it. Ever since then, they called everyone auntie and uncle.

He smiled at the girls in his arms. "Not yet Coco. Soon. Now, where is my wife?"

Tay wrapped her arm around her father's neck. "She say she going to make dinner."

"Alright, to the kitchen we go."

He walked to the kitchen with both girls still in his hands to see his wife placing sliced fruits on the table on the highchair where his 1 year old daughter sat.

"Hey baby." Tiana Freeman walked over to her high school sweetheart and gave him a kiss on the lips.

"Eww." Coco and Tay screwed their face in disgust.

"Babies." Anthony stuck his tongue out at them before placing them on the ground. He walked over to other daughter in the highchair and started to smoother her in kisses. The baby giggled while trying to fight off her dad that was attacking her with kisses.

"Dada!" Angel Freeman screamed out.

"Daddy leave sissy!" Tay walked over to try and protect her sister.

Anthony acted hurt. "Wow, my own daughters are against me." He turned to his wife. "What did you do to my babies?!" He asked playfully.

Tiana rolled her light brown eyes that her daughters inherited. "Stop playing... how was work?"

He shrugged. "Still training both teams for their last game of the semester. Nothing crazy. You?"

She sighed. "I got a new case. She's 15 and just found out she's pregnant by a dude that's 18 but she won't say who."

"Damn."

"Same thing I said."

Tiana worked as a social worker for adolescents who were in the foster system. Anthony being a teacher and Tiana being a social worker meant the two could work off each other if they just so happened to know the same child. It made work easier for both of them.

"I'll look into it."

"Thanks."

"Mommy what's for dinner?" Tay asked as she finished up her fruit that she abandoned when she heard the door open.

"We're having tuna pasta." Tiana answered her daughter as she went over to Angel to take her out of the highchair and pass her over to her father.

"Ok."

Anthony took a seat at the table Coco and Tay were sitting at with Angel in his arms. "So, have you thought about what you might for your birthday girls?"

Their birthday was the talk of the month. It was just before Halloween and Huey's birthday that just so happened to fall on the same week so the theme kind of went with the holiday.

"Ummm, a colouring book and some paint and an iPhone?" Tay asked sweetly.

Anthony nearing chocked. "iphoonnneee?"

"Yeah!"

"Hm. When you 15." Tay pouted but Anthony looked away before her puppy dogs' eyes could get him. "What about you Coco?"

"Uh, a bike!"

Anthony nodded, already knowing Dante had brought one for her. "Ok wh-"

Suddenly, Coco gasped making Anthony and Tiana's heart leap in their chest. "What is it Coco?" Tiana asked.

"The present!" Coco shouted before running off. Tay understood what she meant and chased after her.

"What are those girls up to?"

Anthony shook his head before placing Angel back in her highchair as he saw she wanted more fruit. "I have no clue but I'm scared."

The two girls ran back with a small blue box in their hand. "There was a man that gave this to us at school. He told us not to open it until we got home." Coco told them.

Instantly, Anthony snatched it out of Coco's hand. "Daddy, that's ours!"

"Who gave it you? What did he look like?" He asked seriously. He could feel his blood pressure rising.

They shrugged. "He wore all black and had a funny accent."

The adults felt a sick feeling in their stomach. "What else did they say?"

"They said they knew our daddies." Coco nodded as she thought back to the conversation they had.

"And where was this man?" Tiana asked. She had her hand on her phone ready to call whoever she needed to call.

"By the school gate." Tay answer her mother's question. "At lunch time he called us over."

"Did he call you by your first name?"

They shook their head. "No, he said Freeman."

Tiana looked at the box and she felt the colour drain from her brown skin. "Why is there a padlock?"

"Girls, go watch some tv." Anthony instructed the girls. Without hesitation, they walked into the living room to find something to watch. He followed behind, carrying the highchair so he and his wife could talk alone.

"What do you think is in there?" Tiana asked nervously now that they were alone.

"I don't know and I don't really want to find out."

"But we're going to have to open it at some point Tony."

He sighed. "I know I know... you got your phone?" She nodded. "Alright, keep it close just in case we need to call someone. Bobby pin?" Tiana walked over to her bag and reached into the bottom, knowing she always had a random things at the bottom.

"Here you go." She handed the item over and stood nervously behind him.

Anthony began to pick the padlock. It was a questionable skill to have but he grew up in a questionable family. This was a basic skill they all learned when they were preteens. It was skill he was always good at doing.

It only took a minute for Anthony to unlock the padlock. He stood and looked at his wife.

"You ready?"

She nodded with wide eyes. She was scared at what was in the mystery box a stranger gave to her child. The fact that the school failed to address this incident was getting her angry and she didn't even care about what was inside, yet.

Anthony took a deep breath. He moved his hand forward and lifted the top half of the box.

"Ahh-!" Tiana screamed but was cut off by Anthony covering her mouth with his large hand. He pulled her into his arms as he turned her away from the blue box. He didn't want the girls to run back into the kitchen and see what they were seeing if they heard Tiana scream.

Tiana felt as if she was hyperventilating and tried her best to calm down but it was hard to after what she just saw.

Anthony looked into his wife's water eyes. "Baby, please don't scream, I don't want the girls coming in." She nodded quickly and he slowly removed his hand.

She took a deep breath, trying to get her breathing back to normal. "Tony what the fuck?!" She whispered yelled, being cautious of her volume. "Why is this happening to us?!"

"I got to call Dante..."

"I don't care which fucking cousin you call, just call them. Who gives a 3 and 4 year old a box of three different shades of fingers?!"

"Shhh." Anthony tried to shush his wife. He made sure the tv was at a good level but he still wanted to be quiet.

"Don't you sh me motherfucker." She pointed her finger at him. "This is some serious shit Anthony! This is our daughters we're talking about."

"I know, I'm pissed too."

"It doesn't seem like it."

"I ain't going to achieve shit by fucking screaming am I?" He asked her sarcastically.

She crossed her arms angrily. "I am going to get them kids ready and we're going to go down to that school to find out what fucking man came up to our kids while you tell your fucking cousins the shit that is going on." Tiana stomped out the kitchen but came back a second later. "And put that shit in a plastic bag, I don't wanna see it and I don't want the girls to either!" She stomped back out the room.

Anthony sighed and pulled out his phone. He was pissed too and knew this was not going to be a relaxing Friday evening.

* * *

Raven dodged to the side as she watched an incoming punch. "Nice jab Cindy. If that connected, I know that shit would've hurt."

Hours later and the group were wrapping up their session. It had been a long day of training and the girls could feel their body becoming sore.

Cindy stood up straight with her hands on her hips, breathing heavily. "Damn. I have never been so fucking tired from training before."

"Well actually training to fight pushes your body to new limits. You try to learn so many skills at one time it can be hard." Hiro told her.

"I know that's right." Royalty said from her spot. She was laid out on the mat as if she was a star fish with her eyes closed. "A quick little fight because a bitch disrespected me or my girls, cool, I got that. A full-length fight that is a matter of life and death as if I am in the Equaliser? I'll catch you later."

"Girl stop being dramatic." Riley lightly kicked her foot as he walked over to her.

Royalty looked up at him annoyed. "Nigga as I said before, you've been fighting for years, I play fought for years. Don't chat shit to me."

"Ok Rihanna." He held his arms up in defence.

"Am I the only one that doesn't have a nickname?" Ming asked.

"Nah your ass is Lucy as in Lucy Liu from Charlie's Angel and shit."

Jazmine shook her head and laughed. "So you finally have a name for all of us?"

"Yup!"

"I still don't know how he comes up with them." Caesar shook his head at his long-time friend.

"Neither do I." Hiro agreed.

"Let's get this straight. Ming is Lucy, Cindy is Christiana, Jazmine is Mariah and Royalty is Rihanna. Oh right, and Raven is Gabriella but you've been calling her that for years."

"But Raven actually looks like her, none of us look like the person he compared us to." Jazmine pointed out.

Before they could all argue, Dante stormed into the room with Demetrius and Faith running behind up, catching the group off guard.

Huey instantly turned his attention to his angry cousin who went straight to the punch bag and throwing punches at it. "Dante. What's up with you?"

"I'm going to kill them niggas!"

"What niggas cuz?" Riley asked seriously too. He was ready to kill anyone that was troubling his cousin.

"Them Russian fucks! They came to my fucking daughters' school! They came to Tay and Coco's school and talked to them!"

The room was full of shock. "Shit, they good?"

"Yeah but that doesn't fucking matter. They gave them a motherfucking box with fucking fingers inside but they didn't see, only Tony and Tiana saw. I'm pissed!" Dante shouted as he punched the bag again.

Raven's eyes squinted together. "Who the fuck do they have? We always on a rescue mission but I think it's time we just start offing them all quickly."

Huey shook his head but paid attention to his angry cousin. "Do they know what the guy looks like?"

Dante was too angry to hear the question so Faith answered for him. "Tiana and Anthony are going down to the school now to get them to check the cameras. They have the box with them."

"Good. We're going. Then we can leave and sort some shit out."

"Fine by me. I don't care who comes, just know I'm killing somebody today." Dante stormed out the room without giving anyone a second to fully take in what he said.

Faith sighed and rubbed her forehead. "Take care of him please, I know he's extra stressed now."

"Yeah you know we got him." Riley reassured her.

Huey turned to Jazmine. "Sor-"

"No need to apologise. This is more family than business. Go do what you need to do. Text me when you can." Jazmine walked over to him and kissed him on the cheek. If the situation wasn't so serious, his cousin would've teased him but it wasn't the time. They had to be serious. "We're going to go home and take the day off to relax."

"Ok. Text me when you guys get home." They all said goodbye to each other before racing out the room to go where they needed to go, leaving the girls behind.

Raven sighed. "This shit is never easy. I'm just tired of all these rescue missions we've been going on lately. Something needs to pop off again."

"It makes my job easier because none of you have had too bad of injuries." Faith told her.

"Baby don't jinx that."

"Sorry, I'm just a little worried."

Jazmine walked up to Faith and gave her a reassuring smile. "I'm sure they'll be fine. They're too stubborn to get themselves hurt."

Faith sighed. "Sometimes I wish that was enough."

"Well, I guess we have to get used to this. Them going away so suddenly and all." Cindy stretched.

The women began to slowly walk outside just as Pedro came to hand over Cairo who was comfy in his car seat.

"Here. Take me and Faith number. If you need anything even to check up on any of your boyfriends, text us. Or to just chill, whatever female friends do together." Raven offered.

"Sure, send it to Jazzy first and she can share it with us." Ming suggested, which they then did.

An idea popped into Royalty's head. "You know what we should do? Go to a club and I mean not Empire or the Blue Moon. A different club. Girls night. Dress up all fine that our mans will wanna come and follow us."

"I'm the only one here that's single." Raven rolled her eyes.

"Technically I am too." Royalty mumbled to herself.

Faith started to tease Raven. "No wonder your ass is so uptight. Maybe you can find some dick there and loosing you up."

"I mean that's one way you could put it but it works too." Cindy smirked next to them.

"Wow. I'm not that bad. Plus, I am a single mother who happens to be in a gang and running two clubs. I ain't got time for a nigga."

"Well maybe you will have time for one when we find you one." Royalty grinned.

Raven could see Cairo starting to fuss and sighed. She turned to the girls waiting for an answer with anticipated smiles. "Fine. Fine. But I don't do one-night stands or sleep with someone the first time I meet them."

"I mean maybe the second time you could. Worked for Royalty and Riley." Ming pointed over to her.

"Did it really?"

"Heyyy. We're getting there." Royalty tried to defend themselves.

"Just try and relax Raven." Jazmine smiled at the taller woman.

"Oh my gosh, bbyyeeee! All this peer pressure right now. See you ladies later. Faith, you not doing anything. Come join me out to eat." Raven started to speed walk as best as she could holding a car seat.

"Don't have to tell me twice. Bye girls."

The Gems walked over to their own car and stared at it.

"I'm not driving. I can't feel my legs." Ming told them as she made her way straight to the back seat.

"I nominate Jazmine."

"Agreed." Royalty nodded at Cindy's suggestion as she made her way to the other side of the car to get in the back too.

"Here's the keys Jazzy." Ming handed the keys over to Jazmine who looked at it in disbelief.

"Wow. Where's the love?"

"At home, where you're gonna drive us to." Cindy replied, making Jazmine want to slap her hand over her face.

"I can't stand you hoes sometimes."

* * *

The Freeman's, Hiro and Caesar all rolled up to the school, ignoring the questioning looks they were receiving. They knew none of them had children in the school so it was a bit weird that they were here.

"Hi, I'm here to talk to the principle." Dante walked up to the front desk and asked. "My cousin is already in there with my daughter, Cori Freeman."

The receptionist instantly recognising him. "Yes, go through."

"Me and Caes are gonna hang back out here."

Huey nodded at his friends before follow Dante as he expertly navigated through the school.

"Daddy!" Coco ran over to her father that she hadn't seen in 4 days. She just so happened to be coming back from the bathroom when she saw him walking to the same place she was going.

"Hey baby." He squatted down so he could give his daughter a hug and kiss.

"Hi uncle Dem, uncle Huey and uncle Riley." Coco waved behind him.

"Hey Coco."

She turned back to her father with a frown. "Daddy, am I in trouble?"

"No baby. Nothing like that."

"Ok... auntie Tia and uncle Tony are really mad."

Dante took a deep breath, trying not to get angry himself. His cousin and wife had every right to be mad, he was too. "Daddy is too baby but everything is going to be fine. Don't you worry."

"I still get birthday?"

"Of course."

"Yay!" Coco looked behind Dante again and looked at Huey. "Your birthday is coming too! You having party?"

'Just one step closer to death.' Huey thought but he knew he couldn't tell a 3-year-old that. He still struggled on how to talk to children sometimes and he wasn't around his baby cousins enough to learn how to. Dante and Anthony already told Huey that he couldn't say that to the girls, it would traumatise the poor girls and so far, he was doing a good job at not breaking their dreams.

"No I am not." Was all he decided to say.

Coco frowned. "Well, next time."

Demetrius stepped forwards. "Let's do what we gotta do."

They silently agreed and walked into the office. They could hear the sound of a muffled voice of a female shouting behind the next door they were about to walk through.

"Damn." Riley cursed under his breath.

Tay was sitting on the chair outside the office door on her tablet and looked up. "Hi." She waved.

They greeted her back. "Coco, go sit next to your cousin while we talk to your teacher."

"Ok daddy."

The little girls went back into their own conversation as they men walked into the office.

"Mrs Freeman-" The principle started but stopped when she saw the additional people who entered the room. "Oh, um hello Mr Freeman. I see you brought the family along but I don't see the need."

"Well I saw the need for the school to be paying attention to a strange man hanging around my daughters' school who then happened to communicate and give something to her and her cousin. As we both know, you failed to inform me and my cousin about that." Dante replied.

Riley had to supress his snicker as he saw the womans smile drop. "He gotchu there huh?"

She cleared her throat. "Yes, an unfortunate event that we are looking into. We will be contacting the police-"

This time Huey cut her off. "No need. You'll be wasting their time."

"But it is the school's policy to get the police involved in such incidents."

"It doesn't matter. The school and police are going to do little about it." Anthony told her. It was sad truth that they all knew. As a teacher himself, he sadly has witnessed cases that needed to go further fall flat on deaf ears.

"I want a report from all the staff present on today's lunch time to understand why they were unable to supervise all children in their care." Tiana looked the woman dead in the eyes as she said it seriously. Her professionalism was kicking back in after screaming for a whole minute.

The principle took a deep breath. The Freeman's were nice people when she first met them at the enrolling of their daughters but now, they just seemed scary. She did not want to have them come to her office again, especially in this mood.

"I want to see the security cameras." Huey added to the list of demands.

"I'm sorry Mr Freeman but as you do not have a child that goes to this school, I cannot provide you with such evidence. By right, you shouldn't even be in the room as well as the other two at this moment in time."

Anthony leaned forward in his chair. "Listen. We're already not happy about how a someone was talking to our daughter while on school grounds, a place where these types of events should not happen, I suggest you give my cousin what he needs so he can find that man. I know he will actually get the job done. No one messes with a Freeman, that's for sure."

"Unless you want the other parents to hear about your failed safeguarding. They won't be too happy knowing that could've been their own child." Tiana added.

"I understand your frustration..." She trailed off. She looked around at the family all glaring at her. At first, she wasn't going to give in but she knew they were going to find a way to get it anyway. She grabbed the phone and began pressing some buttons. "Hi, can you have security pull up the video footage of today, around the end of lunch time, on the north side of the playground by the gate please?"

The Freeman's smirked. Huey was just happy he didn't have to rough up no security guard. Even if the principle said no, he was still going to find the security to get what he needed. He was going to find out who wanted to mess with his baby cousins and whether a person decided to co-operate or not was his problem. He was going to get what he needed.

It took another 30 minutes for the Freeman's to get what they needed before leaving the school, much to the principles relief.

"You didn't need to come you know." Anthony said, directing it to Huey, Riley and Demetrius.

"That's my niece, I'm always going to come through every time."

"Yeah and plus, that shit is 'coz of our shit anyway." Riley told him.

Huey slightly nodded. "Don't worry. I got something for that bitch anyway."

"Ok." Anthony remembered what he needed to hand over and quickly went to his car to pull out the plastic bag that he was glad the girls didn't see. "This for you. The lock already picked."

"Still picking locks I see." Huey smirked.

"Nigga you just mad that I was better at doing it."

"Was being the key word."

Before they could go back and forth as always, Tiana honking the horn got their attention. "The kids are hungry! Let's go Tony."

Anthony sighed. "The wife called... make sure you get that dickhead that wanted to try and fuck with my kids." There was time when Anthony fully agreed with what they did. He wouldn't be able to do it himself and as sick as it sounded, he was glad that he had people to do certain things for him in a heartbeat.

"Trust me. That nigga ain't gonna see another day once we find him. That's a promise cuz." Riley said seriously.

"Good. Hit me up when you got something."

"Will do." Demetrius told his older cousin.

The little family drove off as Dante came back over to them after waving to his daughter goodbye. "You got the box?"

Huey lifted the plastic bag to show he had it in his hands. He took it out and opened it, showing the same fingers that Anthony and Tiana saw and the what Coco and Tay could've seen. "Any of you recognise the hand?"

"Yeah, that one is that nigga uh, Carl, yeah. He does corner shit. He's had that finger tat for years." Dante answered.

Just then, a female ran up to Huey and slapped him across the face. "Who the fuck-!"

"Where is my brother?!" She shouted at him.

"Who the fuck is your brother?" Huey asked, pissed that a random woman decided to slap him across the face.

She sarcastically laughed. "Wow, nigga doesn't even keep track of his own people. What a shit leader you are."

"Tell me who the fuck your brother is and maybe I can help your dumb ass." He never liked cussing at women but sometimes, they deserved it. He just never put hands on them.

"Carl nigga!" She answered, fighting the tears that wanted to run down her cheeks.

"Well shit, the timing was not good." Demetrius scratched his neck before slowly taking the box from Huey hand.

She saw this and squinted her eyes. "You know something... what's in the box?"

"None of your concern hoe."

"My name is Mary, not hoe. I'm not like them girls you be fucking."

Riley's mind instantly went to Royalty. "Ay, listen bi-"

"Give me the box." Mary turned away from Riley and turned to Demetrius and snatched the box out his hand.

"Oi!" He shouted as he tried to pull it back but it was too late.

The box opened and everything dropped on the floor.

Mary slowly bent down and inspected one of the fingers. Her blood went cold then hot in a split second, she didn't even have time to scream in fear. "What did you do?! I knew I should've told his ass to leave you alone! You ain't shit Ghost! You think you the shit but you just a bummy ass nigga that uses people's addiction for gain. You killed my brother!" She screamed at him.

As she went to slap him, he grabbed her wrist and stared at her right in the eyes. "I never killed your brother so get that shit right. Your dumb ass is actually holding us up from finding him so why don't you turn your loud ass somewhere else while we sort this shit out. Be grateful that we're going to look for him whereas another fucker would've left his ass." He knew she was upset but again, he didn't take disrespect lightly no matter how angry you were. People seemed to have be reminded their place again and he didn't mind putting them right back where it was.

"You have 24 hours to bring my brother home. If not, I'm calling the cops." She threatened.

"Bitch they not gonna do shit. You wasting your fucking time."

"Try me nigga. 24 hours. That's it!" Mary turned and stormed away. She left with more questions than answers which just made her angrier. She wanted her brother back and she wanted him now.

It was silent for a few seconds before Caesar and Hiro walked over to the group of Freeman's watching the angry woman speed away in her car they didn't even notice pull up. She must've just found them by chance.

"You got what you need?" Caesar asked. The two had heard the shouting match before they even went over so he didn't even need to ask anything about it.

"Yeah. We got the video. Just gotta get Pedro to do his shit." Dante answered him. He was more relaxed knowing his daughter was ok but he was still ready to break some necks at the same time.

"And there's just fingers on the floor..."

"Which we found out one is Carl's."

"Damn, he was a good dealer." Caesar shook his head sadly.

Hiro turned to Huey. "So, we doing this?"

Huey looked at them all and slightly nodded. "We're doing this."

* * *

"You know, you are really putting up a fight for a nigga that is nearly dead."

"Because I know Ghost is going to find me."

"Ghost doesn't give a fuck about you! You're still here aren't you? Where's your knight in shiny armour at huh? Huh?!"

"Urghh!"

Cheetah threw her brass knuckles off her blood-soaked hands after punching her victim across the face one last time and looked at him in the chair. "Pathetic." She spat in his barely recognisable face from how bloody and broken his face looked. She wiped her hands on a cloth she had near her. "Do you not see how serious I am?! I already killed your fucking friend." She pointed over to the body on the floor. She was long gone dead. Within the first hour of her being there, she was already had her intestines in her lap.

"I didn't know her."

"Stop lying! I know you know something more than her you bitch!" Cheetah grabbed a knife and frustratedly threw it his way, narrowly missing his face.

"You missed." He just about smirked at her.

She squinted her red eyes at him. "Ok smart ass." She ran forward with speed he has only seen from one other person and kicked him in the chest, making the whole chair flip over. She took deep breathes before walking over to him. He wasn't moving. "Whoops. He dead?" She checked his pulse. "Nah, he good." She stepped outside to the two men and one woman standing outside. "Take their bodies and dump them somewhere. He ain't dead just out cold." The men nodded and walked inside to collect the bodies while the women strolled back inside.

"You're messy."

Cheetah looked over at the other woman. "Excuse me?"

"I said you're messy. Look at all the mess you made. I bet you didn't even get what Vladimir needed."

"Unless you wanna join your twin sister in an unmarked grave, I suggest you watch your mouth." Cheetah threatened.

Natasha rolled her eyes. The comment stung but she didn't want to show that it got to her. "You only get to do this because we know you fucked Vladimir."

Cheetah squinted her eyes at her. "Your fast ass did too, don't try and lie. At least the times I did fuck him was years before you even crossed his mind so don't get it twisted whore. I was there before he led this gang."

People had heard rumours about the two having a romantic relationship. Some thought it was true while others thought it was just lies. Natasha smirked, she just admitted to sleeping with her boss, she didn't even care that the question was flipped onto her.

"Doesn't matter. At least he respects me."

Cheetah snorted before stepping out the way as the two men dragged out the bodies. "He just keeping you. Ain't shit to respect about your ass."

"Whatever. What kind of name is Cheetah anyway?"

"The name I was born with."

"Right because anyone with a brain cell would name their child Cheetah."

In a blink of an eye, Cheetah had Natasha pushed up against the wall and a silver blade pressed against her neck.

"You talk too much and if you must know, it was the ones who raised me ever since my parents were killed. One that saw how fast I was compared to anyone my age."

"So, your parents were killed... what did they call you before?" Natasha asked, much to Cheetah's distaste. She didn't like people in her personal life. The least they knew about each other, the better.

"None of your business bitch."

Natasha smirked. "Aww did I-ow!"

Cheetah blade dug into the girl's shoulder. She didn't care that Vladimir was going to lecture her for harming one of his toys but she didn't care. The girl needed to be put in her place and she didn't mind doing it physically. "Listen here Natasha." She said her name in disgust as she looked the girl deep in her eyes. "I don't take disrespect lightly, especially from a whore like you. Giving your pussy up doesn't mean shit around here, you're just another one of his play things."

"I have a feeling you just mad because your parents are dead or that you're not Vladimir's favourite anymore." Natasha said through gritted teeth.

Cheetah dug the blade in deeper before pulling it out. She made sure Natasha saw her own blood dripping off the blade. "You know... I've always had a thing for knives. I just loved them so much. Now think about how fast I can catch your dumb ass slipping if you try some slick shit again. I'm sure we can get another bitch to replace you. Remember, you are replaceable whereas there is only one Cheetah, skank."

As much as she wanted to say something witty back, she chose not to. She knew even if she said something and then ran, Cheetah would catch her. Whether it being her knife or hands first, she just knew it was almost impossible to outrun her. The woman was just so fast.

"Get the fuck out my face." Cheetah threw the girl to the side, who stumbled at first. Once she regained her footing, she made her way straight out the room and to find the person who could fix her up. Her dislike for Cheetah had now grown even larger. She really wishes she could kill her... maybe that's what she needed to do, then Vladimir could see how good she was. Maybe one day, she will get what she wished for.

Cheetah took a deep breath to calm herself down before looking around the room. It was a standard torture room, a place she usually found herself. The smell of blood was still flooding her senses but she was so used to it by now, she didn't even notice it. She couldn't help but to think... what was her real parents like? She was a grown woman but it was still a question that was always at the back of her mind. She was told they were killed in a car accident which she was involved in also, that's why she can't remember anything from before. She just remembers waking up in a room and a woman watching over her. The woman that soon became a mother to her.

The woman and her husband that became her father to her never discussed her past with her, it was weird but she never thought too much into it. They just said they tried finding distant relatives but never could. Since then, she didn't care. She had them and Vladimir. That was all she needed. Well, thought she needed.

She sighed and whipped the blood of her knife. 'I need to get my head straight. If something was wrong with my past, it would've come to light already. Nothing has changed. I need to accept it. Now all I need to focus on is taking down the Panthers... starting with the head.'

Cheetah walked out of the torture room with her head held high. She had a couple more plans up her sleeve, agreeing with Vladimir to send the fingers to their house were just the beginning. She had a lot of things in store and with help with her little torture dummy's friend, she got what she needed. She was about to knock the Panthers down one by one and she was going to enjoy doing so.

* * *

**Well, I hope you like this chapter. The self defence part, I don't think you should take into account what I said lool. I had to quick search some things to at least sound realist as much as I could. I know there wasn't much " main characters interaction" in this if you get what I mean but next chapter is going to be more focused on each relationship so that's a little sneak peak. I've already started to write it.**

**Bulmas Ego: BLM all day everyday and I liked how Raven has now changed too, her character is much better now than in the beginning and I'm glad you like her and Jazmine relationship which is just going to grow as time goes on.**

**GREENPEACE1990: You will see more of the couples next chapter so look out for that.**

**BoondocksFever234: Cheetah is one to look out for, that's all I'm saying. Raven, of course, has to be a badass. Royalty and Riley are still young so they got a lot to work out. Now I want to put out the chapter asap because you all want to see more couple-y stuff. Don't worry, I already got that shit planned.**

**melevolentedge: Thank you and if you did reread it, how was it the second time around?**

**Chel29: Girrlll you just gotta wait for all the tea to see if your theory is right haha.**

**RuffinNoRelation: Well to this crazy ass journey, can't wait to hear more reviews from you.**

**Finally to the Guest:... tf? I mean the first one, I understand, I spent a whole week trying to go back through the old chapter to reread everything and change what I needed, I still have like 5 chapters left. For some reason, I can read something a lot of time and I don't register mistakes. I'm trying to get better at that, my bad I guess. But the rest of that shit was lowkey annoying I'm not even going to lie. Whatever, I'm still going to try my best to make sure they are no mistakes as best as I can even if that means I miss it the first time. I read over everything multiple times but as I said before, I miss things, it has been one of my problems since I was at least 10. (Shit used to kick my ass all the time and still does years later).**

**Anyway, I'm going to go start writing the next chapter.**

**Until next time**

**-TBG**


	36. Chapter 36: Four Date & a Crime

Ghost looked down at gun. He checked to make sure it was full of bullets and that the safety was off. They had tracked down Mary's brother and were on their way to retrieve him. Huey had to delete the memory of her slapping him across the face because if he didn't, he would've left her brother but that wasn't the type of person he was. He had to save Carl. They have been on a lot of rescue missions ever since the war had officially started which was weird but they never left a person behind. They would continue to do so if they needed to even if some people saw it as a waste of time.

"How far we got left to go?" Ghost asked his driver.

HO looked down at the GPS location that Pedro had sent to them after searching for Carl's tracker. It has been in the same place for the past 20 minutes. "5 minutes."

"Good."

Ghost rubbed his forehead. It was pitch black outside, autumn showing off how dark it could get. He always knew how much harder it was to do what they needed to do in such conditions but he trained as much as he could in these conditions and that the rest of his people did too. Chicago was known to have bitter winters which could make it harder to fight and hold weapons but he made sure people were prepared for any condition. They needed to be prepared for any given situation as much as possible. There is nothing worse than having numb fingers when you're trying to pull a trigger. That few seconds of numbness can cause you to go numb forever.

Ghost heard his phone ring, he looked at the screen and saw Jazmine was the one calling him so he answered with no hesitation, he hasn't heard from her since he left to go down to his cousins' school.

"Hello."

"_Hey, how did it go at the school?"_ Was the first thing she asked. Hearing her voice put Huey at ease because something was telling him that this was not going to be a simple rescue mission. Every gang member needed an attachment to the world outside of the violence and the drugs and Jazmine was becoming that very person for him.

"As bad as one could get."

"_You find the guy?"_

"Not yet, I got Pedro working on that."

He heard her sigh on the other side of the phone. _"I feel for Anthony and Dante you know. That must be scary to hear a stranger, a dangerous one at that, talked to your daughter while they were away from you. How they taking it?"_

Usually, Huey disliked when people constantly asked him questions but from Jazmine, it wasn't that way. He could hear her genuine concern for his family and not just for him which said a lot about her character. He always knew how much of a caring person she was and she always looked out for other people around her. He mostly saw it when it came to her friends who he already knew she would fight for in any given situation.

"I hear that." Huey was about to answer her question but saw HO was slowing down. "Jazmine, I have to go now." He didn't want to end the conversation so soon but he had to get back to what he was out for.

"_Ok, that's fine, I understand. Be careful please and text me when you get home so I know you're safe."_ She instructed him.

He raised an eyebrow, despite her not being able to see. "But won't you be sleeping?"

"_So?! I wanna see that you text me at whatever time you got home so I know you're ok. If you don't, I'll ignore you for a whole month."_

"You wouldn't." He pushed.

"_Oh but I would."_ She pushed back. _"Text me Huey Freeman!"_ She shouted at him playfully but firmly at the same time because she knew if he didn't, she would be paranoid if she never wakes up to a text saying he was safe and at home.

"Ok, I will. Bye."

"_Byeeee. Stay safe!"_

He had to stop the snort he was about to let out. "Yeah, I don't know what that is."

"_Huey!"_

"Goodnight Jazmine."

"_Ugh, night Huey..."_

Huey hung up and jumped out the van, gun already in his hand as his people were already outside waiting for him. It was just him and HO tonight as his other right hands handled other business or in Dante's case, spend some time with his daughter. The incident had really shaken him up and the rest were working on finding out who the man was.

"Are you sure this is the right location?" One of the members asked as he looked around the open space.

HO nodded but not sure himself. "Yeah, this is the location I was given."

Ghost looked around as well, not liking the situation either. "We look around and in five minutes, if we don't find anything, we leave, got it? No need to wait around if there is nothing here." The 5 others standing with him nodded. "Guns out, mask up, let's go." They did just that and split up, scanning the area.

With each step, Ghost made sure he listened out for any type of sound. A pained moan, a dragging of a body of someone injured and crawling, rustling trees and bushes, anything. Anything that can give him a sign of life around him. The emptiness around him didn't feel right, he wanted to get out of there quick time, this was not a place he wanted to stay long.

"Ghost!" The same person from before called his name. "Look..." He took his eyes away from his leader and back to what he found, barely alive.

Ghost walked over and looked at what the other man was looking at. "Shit." Was the first thing that slipped out his lips.

There on the ground, was Carl hanging onto dear life, his own life, covered his blood and bruises with a random girl bloody and clearly dead next to him. "Them folks are evil..."

HO found his way over to the two and went straight to the body. "There's a pulse but barely, we need to take him now or he's going to die."

"At this point, he's better off staying in this ditch anyway and just dying."

"You know that's not what we do, we're going to take him back and take him to the hospital. What happens from there is up to the family to decide." HO told them.

"I just think-"

"You're not. If you was, you would be helping HO move his body to the van so we can get the fuck out of here." Ghost cut him off sharply.

The man had to hold himself from giving a smart comment because he knew that could get him killed in seconds. "Fine le-"

Ghost squinted his eyes shut as he felt warm liquid spray onto his face. "Fuck!" He heard HO scream and duck. Ghost looked down and saw a new body on the floor, this one still warm with a single bullet hole through its skull.

"Silencer. We need to get out of here now!" Ghost picked up the deceased man and ran as fast as he could with the extra weight as HO did the same with Carl, the person they were looking for. One of the members held open the van door but was then shot in the neck. "Not another..." Ghost mumbled under his breath in frustration as he threw the first body in his arms in the back of the van before helping the new victim get into the back. He did not have time for his team to be dropping like flies.

"Ahhh!" Ghost heard from his left. He looked over just in time to see Mirror collapse to the floor, gripping her leg with a pained look on her face. Next to her was the last member with them, who looked like he got shot too.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" Ghost shouted before sprinting over to help. "Come on!"

"I'm good, help him." She told him through gritted teeth as she stood with the help of Ghost.

Ghost used his body to shield her as he saw that he was not being targeted and did his best to drag the other man that got shot back to the van. It took longer than he wished but he managed to do it. He flung himself inside and slammed the door shut, HO pulling off before he could even shut the door.

Mirror ripped off her mask and immediately used it as a bandage to try and stop the bleeding. Ghost checked over the other men that got shot during their rescue mission.

"I've already contacted Alex, I'll get us there quick!" HO shouted as his foot didn't get lighter on the acceleration.

Ghost sighed, clearly pissed off at how the night changed. "Don't bother rushing. These three are dead. Just take us to the hospital so we can drop off Carl so his family can see him. Mirror how you doing?" He asked the woman sitting across from him.

"I've stopped the bleeding so the detour is fine. Just make sure Alex is there please. I don't want to bleed out like these guys did."

"Fine." Ghost leaned his head against the side of the vehicle and looked up at the roof. He now had blood on more areas of his skin and it pissed him off that it was from his own people. If he had to make a choice of whose blood he preferred to have on him, he preferred it to be his enemies as he found satisfaction on making them suffer for trying him. He knew something was wrong the moment they got there, the area was too empty. No house, no store, not even a little shed, nothing. They lured him there to show off. They didn't shoot at him because that was too easy. They wanted to see him suffer the consequences of having his team die and him untouched and unmarked. It would look very suspicious to others. They knew that even targeting HO was too easy, they needed to get the extras. They would look like dead weight to Ghost and make him look like a terrible leader which was the last thing he needed people thinking. He didn't need anyone turning on him now, even if they tried, they would be dead as soon as. As much as he hated to say at a moment like this but he was ready to start recruiting more people. This business was forever growing and he needed more people. They lost 3 in one night, who knows who else is going to be next.

"We're here." HO announced from the front.

Ghost guessed they arrived to the hospital and went to grab the door handle. "You sure you don't want to just get fixed up here?" He asked Mirror since they were already at the hospital and he didn't think she would want to wait any longer even if it isn't ideal to enter a hospital with gang related injuries. That's when things got complicated.

She shook her head, breathing slightly heavy. "No, it's fine. I don't feel like answering their questions."

He nodded, respecting her decision before turning and opening the door. They all knew if she did, the hospital would most likely go on lock down, have police involved and a lot of questions being asked, one's Ghost wasn't ready or willing to answer.

They were by the ambulance station where two people were coming over with a gurney as Ghost pulled out the still unconscious Carl.

"What happened?" One asked as they got the body onto the gurney, ready to bring inside but to be truthful, Ghost had no clue himself.

"Found him. He looks in bad shape." Was all he told them. He slammed the back doors shut before they could look inside and see the other dead bodies and start asking more questions and walked to the passenger side, driving away without looking back.

"How the fuck did that just happened?" HO thought out loud, clearly confused but annoyed about what just happened.

Ghost shook his head, understanding his partners annoyance. "I have no clue but that just made things more complicated. These motherfuckers are not catching me a break and its pissing me off. I got other shit to do and all they wanna do is destroy every fucking thing."

"They just don't learn."

"And seem to be getting braver. They need to be picked off and I'm not talking one by one, I mean in large quantities."

"I hear that..." HO sighed. "And here I was hoping I could have a relaxing night. I just got something for Ming I know she is going to love and this ruined my mood."

"What's that?" Ghost asked, genuinely curious, the conversation changing to their girls without even realising.

"I got her something for her on Wednesday, for us to go on a date. I told Caesar about me taking her out on a date and he's planning something the same night. I think Riley might be onto something now as well."

Hearing that made Huey think. He has yet to take Jazmine out since she got back and maybe it will be a nice little get away from his crazy work. It sounded bad that he was ready to dismiss what happened tonight, at least for a few hours, as if three of his men wasn't lying dead in the back of the van, Mirror was bleeding and Carl was in hospital having doctors scrambling over his body trying to find out what was wrong with him but sometimes he just needed a break. He was going too hard the last few months and he wasn't going to stop, that was for sure but he just needed that one night off and he was going to do it with Jazmine. He would figure out what they would do later, for now he had a problem to sort out. He had to concentrate on being Ghost.

"I'll think of something for Jazmine... for now, let's get Mirror to Alex and have someone tell the rest they lost a family member."

"I'm glad I don't have to do that." HO sighed as he continued to drive to the warehouse also mad about how the night just switched. This has just created more problems they didn't want to have. He knew Ghost was about to be stressed the fuck out. Now telling a family they have lost someone was going to be nowhere near easy, that was the one job he refused to do.

A few more minutes past by when Ghost phone rang, this time it was from an unknown number. He looked over at his friend who was pulling up to the warehouse before answering.

"..."

He didn't say anything first, waiting for the unknown caller to answer.

"_Ghost? It's me, Dre."_ The person on the other line announced.

Ghost didn't like the sound of that. He almost never got a call from Dre at this time. Even by the sound of his voice, Ghost was not going to like what he was going to be told.

"Yes?" Was all he replied at first.

"_Its not looking good for you man..."_ He trailed off.

Ghost heart picked up in pace. He didn't like the sound of his voice. It was concerning and it took a lot to cause him to become concerned. "What is it?"

Dre sighed from the other side of the phone which was then followed by a police siren coming closer to him. _"It was a slaughter man. Killed everybody."_

"I'm going to need a little more than that Dre." Ghost told him as he felt his blood pressure rise. HO heard this but was waved off before he could question what was wrong and focused back on helping Mirror inside to Alex. The bodies would be taken care of soon.

"_The nigga your beefing just cleaned out two of your spots. He even killed two bystanders. Theres 8 people dead here Ghost and bullets wasn't even the main cause..."_ He finally told the leader. He was used to seeing dead bodies but there were always those few crimes scenes that would make your stomach turn. This was one of them.

Ghost was now even more pissed than earlier. It was almost like getting Carl was a distraction. He slipped up. Within an hour he lost 9 of his people and two bystanders were killed in the process. There was also the random girl they found with Carl, he should probably tell Dre about her. "Fuck... not one of them survived?"

"_Well one... but they might need to start thinking if they want a wood or metal leg."_ Dre joked but his tone was far from being humorous._ "Look, sort your shit out. You said you was going to handle shit but it looks like a crack pandemic is about to kick off again and I don't have time for that. I don't want to spare my men and women for some shit you're doing."_

Ghost rolled his eyes. "You're a fed. It's your job. As a matter of fact, I make your life a whole lot fucking easier but I don't be hearing no thanks for the shit I do."

"_Your shit is killing people Ghost."_

"Your men and women are killing innocent black people Dre. We all got blood on our hands. At least I'm the one that can own up to my own fuck up instead of sweeping it under the rug like a lot of you pigs like to do." Ghost was met with silence on the other line. "Yeah. I thought so."

"_Whatever. Just wanted to tell you that you got a bath load of blood out here tonight. I'll make sure you get the pictures."_ Ghost could hear the frustration in the man's voice by having being told the truth about his career, especially from a criminal like Ghost, no matter the kind of mutual relationship they had created. Ghost sounded a little hypocrite but it needed to be said, it was only fair.

"As always. There's another body for you to pick up. I'll let you know."

The two hung up, not even giving the other a proper goodbye and went back to their own business.

The young leader took a deep breath before walking inside, going to find out who else needed to be added to the deceased list. They went from being picked off one by one but now was going in groups, like how he suggested they do back. The problem was, the Russians had gotten better at hiding their locations and it was frustrating. The Panthers were slowly making progress but Ghost wasn't going to allow it to be slow any longer, it was time to pick back up the pace. He knew one of the ways he could do it was getting that DNA test. He needed to know if there really was another Freeman because that could help him with future plans. Freeman's were always loyal to Freeman's but if that was the case, why the fuck was she with the enemy?! It was key he found out. The anticipation was killing him but until that was sorted out, he had a date to plan.

* * *

"You got us a ticket to kickball competition?!"

"That's right baby."

It was date night. Everyone was out with their significant other on a date the boys had planned without the girls knowing where they were going, they were only told the dress code. The girls had to beg to be told what to at least wear so they were somewhat prepared for whatever craziest they were going to get dragged to. Hiro opted on surprising Ming with tickets to her favourite sport that just so happened to have her favourite team playing. It was a team from her home country. They were currently standing in the parking lot of the stadium they drove nearly two hours to get to when Ming just realised why they were there.

"And not just any tickets... VIP tickets."

Ming gasped. "You got me VIP tickets to see my old team?"

Hiro's grin dropped, looking lost but shocked. "Wait, your old team?"

"Yeah, kinda, the Wushung Kickball Team but this is the adult team. I played juniors."

"Dang, I learn something new about you all the time."

Ming looked at him confused. "I thought I told you about this before?"

He shook his head. "No. We only talked about it briefly. You didn't go into much detail about it. I just knew you was super good."

"Yeah. My grandfather trained me since I was 3 and the training was no joke. I was serious competition. He's probably upset I'm not on that team right now."

Hiro saw her getting sad and wrapped his arms around her waist. "I know he will forever be proud of you. Even if he wasn't, who cares, as long as you're proud of yourself."

She slightly smiled at him and kissed him lightly on the cheek. "You're so sweet."

"I know." He shrugged, acting causal but he was really happy inside that he could make her smile. It was the many goals he had for their relationship. "You know if you told me you know them folks, I would've just had your ass walk up to the gate and show your face."

This made her roll eyes. "That's not how it works."

"It's worth a try."

"Wait, I don't even have my jersey. Shit!" Ming cursed in Mandarin. If she knew she was coming, she would've carried it with her to show her support for the team.

Hiro smirked before moving away from Ming so he could go in the trunk. She watched him open a bag and reveal her jersey. "I had Jazmine give it to me before you could find out."

"You guys are sneaky." She shook her head.

"Only when I need to be." He walked back over and kissed her cheek. "Now, putting it on baby." Hiro handed the jersey over and with a big grin on her face, she threw it over her hoodie since he told her to dress comfy and warm. "Now that you have the right fit, let's go."

Hand in hand, the two walked towards the entrance and went through with ease. The whole time Ming had a large grin on her face and Hiro was happy he could help her smile that hard.

"Can we get some food? I'm hungry." Ming asked.

"Of course, anything for you." He told her gently.

They walked towards the food stands and ordered a whole bunch of food, snacks and drinks to at least get them through the first half of the game.

"It's been years since I've been to a game and you got me tickets to my home team? Yeah, I am beyond happy. Thank you Hiro."

Hiro grinned as they found their seats right at the front and grinned. "You're welcome."

Ming pulled out her phone and started recording. "Jazzy you sneaky bitch! How you know and not tell me?! Either way, your girl is about to have the time of her life out here. If I don't come back, you know why, peace." She pressed stop and sent if off to her group chat. "Just had to flex with my man real quick."

"Well as long as you're with me, you'll get tired of trying to flex all the time because I'm going to be treating you good all the time." Hiro told her truthfully.

He could see the light blush form on either side of her smile. "Hiro... you're so sweet."

"For you, always."

They leaned in close and shared a soft kiss.

"Lemme get another one." He asked against her lips.

"Greedy." Ming mumbled back but gave it to him anyway.

The two pulled away but kept their eyes locked on one another. "We love to see it."

"We really do."

It didn't take long for the game to start and Ming was on edge the whole time. She felt butterflies in her stomach as she watched the game. A part of her wanted to relive the moment just for a second. It was her childhood dream after all. To be in a stadium full of people that was there to watch her play but times has changed. The fact that she could also see some of her old team mates on the team was crazy to her. After she left, she never really talked to them again so it was nice to see at least 3 of them went on further to this level. She was grateful Hiro brought her here.

Hiro watched his girlfriend shout at the game in her native tongue. He had no idea what she was saying since he only knew how to speak Japanese fluently but after today, he really wanted to learn Mandarin so he could at least understand some of what she was saying. Despite not know what she was saying, it was entertaining to see, if he understood, it probably would have him dying of laughter on the floor. He has never seen her watch something as intensely as she was now. He was glad he could see the smile (even if it wasn't on her face whenever the other team got the upper hand) on her face. He had missed her so much when she went to Woodcrest, he thought he would never see her again but like fate, she came back. He refused to let her go again. He never understood the quote that basically said 'if you love something, let it go. If it was true love, it will find its way back' but now, he understood and he has loved the quote ever since. He was not going to have his lifestyle mess up the best thing that has happened to him in years.

"Yes!" Ming shouted as her team got a point.

"That is the end of the first half, meaning it is time for half time!"

Ming took a deep breath and turned to Hiro who had his arm on the back of her chair. He looked so relaxed and so sexy to her right now. "Sorry about that. I know you didn't understand any of what I was saying."

He shrugged. "No big deal. I actually enjoyed listening you scream your head off. I mean I would like to have that same reaction if we go back to my place but that's up to you." He casually flirted.

This made Ming choke on the words she thought she was going to say and watched the smirk grow on his face. Before she could reply the best she could muster up, she heard her name being called.

"Ming? Is that really you?" She heard in Mandarin.

She turned to see one of her old teammates so she replied back in their language. "Amy! It has been so long."

The girls leaned forward and gave each other a hug despite having a barrier between them. Hiro just sat there watching the two, knowing he wouldn't understand nothing for the next minute or so.

"I know. I haven't heard from you in years since you left China after your grandfather's funeral. He was a great coach when he actually helped out with the whole time."

Ming nodded. "Yeah, grandad was something. If he didn't spend time on his business, he would train me to be the best."

"You were the best! I bet you still are." Amy laughed.

"Nah, I don't think so. It's been years since I have played."

"Oh come on Ming. You and I both know you still got it in you. What do you even do out here anyway? Last I heard you was in, what's that place called? Wood something."

"Woodcrest." Ming answered for her. "And I made some friends there and we moved to go college in Chicago."

"Wow and I hear your parent's business have been going well. Soon it will be yours, right?"

Ming held her smile but could feel her body wanting to duck away to try and hide from that question. That was far from the truth. If she didn't know better, one of her male cousins was currently in college to take over the business like they wished she would've done. She decided to turn to the only person that could help her now.

"Uh, Amy, this is Hiro. My boyfriend. He actually brought the tickets as a surprise."

Amy looked between them in shock. Throughout the time they knew each other, Ming was never boy crazy, she was always focused on the game. She never looked like the one to get into a relationship but she guesses times have changed, they were no longer kids. "Boyfriend?"

Hiro, feeling as if he was being introduced stood and stuck his hand out. "Hi, my name is Hiro."

"Amy." She shook his hand before turning back to Ming. "He's cute." She laughed in Mandarin.

Ming laughed, now having the conversation switch to English. "I know."

Amy looked down at the passes around their neck. "Well, I see you have VIP tickets so why don't I give you VIP treatment. Come on." Ming looked at her confused, making Amy roll her eyes. "Come on Ming! It's gonna be fun."

Ming looked over at Hiro who shrugged, showing it was her decision. She sighed, not really wanting to put up much of a fight. "Alright."

With a little help with Hiro, Ming jumped over the barrier and walked across the field, following Amy.

"I wonder what's happen- wait. It cannot be." The commenter started off. "Ladies and gentlemen, if my eyes are not deceiving me, it seems as if Ming Long-Dou has just walked on the field! Her grandfather was a very respectable man in the kickball community back in China and she was trained under him. She was known for being more powerful than anyone had seen in years. Some people have wondered where she has been for years, especially after the passing of her grandfather. It seems as if Amy is giving her the stage to let us see if she still has the moves." He summarised, making Ming roll her eyes. He really just told the whole stadium and people at home her business. She didn't think she would be spotted. Her parents were definitely going to see this.

"How do you know I'm any good since it has been years from when I have last played?" Ming emphasised again as she walked over to her place, waiting to kick the ball.

Amy stood next to the best pitcher on the team who just so happened to have been on the junior team too. "You got this, I believe in you." Amy turned to the pitcher. "Don't go easy on her, I know she got it in her. Remember how she used to play."

He nodded and Amy walked away to get into position.

Ming closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She couldn't believe she was on a kickball field again after all these years. She never thought she would again but she would be lying if she said she wasn't enjoying it, despite being a little nervous. She just had to find her centre, just like how her grandfather taught her.

'You can do this Ming. You got this.' She pumped herself up. Once she opened her eyes, she almost instantly locked eyes with Hiro who was now standing, watching her. He gave her a simple smile and wink. A small gesture that made her feel warm inside and also got her to zone in. She gave him a slight nod before turning to face the right direction. She could hear the faint cheers from people confused but interested about what was about to happen but she blocked them out and focused.

That's when the pitcher started to wind up his throw which she already knew was going to be quick and powerful. As he released it, it was just as she thought. She locked eyes on the ball and from there, years of training overtook her body, she barely remembered what she was doing. All she felt was suddenly feeling weightless and connecting her foot against the ball.

"Wow! It seems Ming Long-Dou still has skills like no other which brings up the question, why isn't she on any teams?!" The commenter shouted as the crowd all began to cheer for Ming.

Amy ran over to Ming with a large smile on her face. "See! You did that like it was nothing! None of us even wanted to try and catch that ball. That would've made us break a bone like you did that boy years again."

Ming laughed. "Yeah I guess I still got it."

"You should seriously come back to China and join the team. We would be undefeated until your retirement."

"Sorry but kickball is not in my future. At one point I thought it was but, I think Chicago is my new place." Ming slightly smiled as she looked past Amy for a second. She could see Hiro smiling proudly at her.

Amy saw the look on her face. "There are plenty of boys in China that would want you. You'll be fine without Hiro and you've dreamt of this moment since we were little."

"As I said, it was a dream but I've moved past it now. You're living yours, I'm going to get mine."

Amy sighed at her old friend. She didn't understand how she was going to give up a career that Ming could easily get with barely a battered eyelid but she guessed each to their own. It was crazy to come to terms with but that wasn't her business. She's living the dream she wanted and she was happy about it. "Whatever you say Ming. If you ever want to join, you know where to find us. Just don't come late."

"You won't have to worry about that."

The two said goodbye so Amy could go back on her break as Ming went back over to her seat.

"I didn't know you had skills like that! You were on fire! Seriously, at one point, I thought I saw fire on the ball."

Ming laughed at Hiro as he helped her back over to her seat. "You're so childish."

"But your love it."

"Debateable."

They shared another laugh before Hiro continued their conversation. "But for real, you're seriously skilled Ming. I ain't never seen shit like that before."

"As I've said before, years and years of training."

"Well at least I know what sport is going to be the family sport and the kid's starter sport." Hiro said without missing a beat.

Ming's head flung around in to look at him in shock. "Huh?"

"Oh look, the game is starting up again." Hiro deliberately ignored her confused look and grabbed a handful of popcorn, all without taking his eyes off the field.

Ming grabbed her own handful and turned to the game too but not without seeing the large grin on Hiro's face. He knew he caught her off guard when he said that and he didn't care. Seeing her reaction was hilarious to him that he had to stop himself from bursting out loud. Ming didn't mind it though, she was going to get him back soon. She was going to play nice now since he was treating her but later, all bets were off, he better prepare himself. For now, she was going to enjoy the game that her boyfriend surprised her with. It was honestly the best date she has ever been on and she couldn't wait for more they would go on. He had actually listened to what she said she was interested in instead of just picking somewhere to go.

Hiro was definitely a keeper.

* * *

Cindy and Caesar sat on the bench tying their laces and making sure it was tight because if it wasn't, this night could end with one or both of them in the emergency room.

"I still can't believe you brought us ice skating."

The two were on their own date and Caesar decided to take her to ice skating for their date. It was something he would never willingly choose to do but he wanted to be different so he settled on ice skating. He also wanted to laugh as they watched each other struggle. He always thought dates should be light hearted and fun so everyone feels comfortable and just enjoy themselves without the pressure of thinking they were actually on a date. He wanted Cindy to let loose from the stress and pressure they called life.

"It's going to be fun, don't even trip."

"I hope not."

Once they were sure their skates were secure on their feet, they stood and made their way towards the ice that already had about 25 other people skating or trying to.

"Damn, is this what it's like walking in heels?" Caesar couldn't help but to ask. It really did feel like he was wearing heels.

Cindy laughed. "Nah, heels are much much worse and that's coming from someone who hated heels with a passion. I was a basketball player, I wore basketball shoes or sneakers majority of the time until the girls eventually broke me into some heels. It took me a good while to get comfy in them."

"You sure, because it feels like it and I would've loved to see your ass struggling like Bambi." Caesar tried to argue as they got to the entrance of the ice rink.

"Boy, it's not even close. Now come on, let's go on the ice." She subconsciously reached out for his hand as she stepped onto the ice.

"Shit!" Caesar let the cuss word fly out of his mouth as his foot slipped as soon as he stepped on the ice. "Man this couldn't even give me a second?!" He asked rhetorically, clearly over the whole ice skating thing already.

Cindy burst out in laughter as she realised what was happening. "Wait, don't tell me you can't ice skate? Oh my gosh this is going to be so funny. Why did you choose this if you can't skate?"

"First of all, I can skate. Just not on ice. Second of all, sorry if a nigga wanted to be adventurous. I thought this was going to be us laughing at each other watching us fall on our ass." Caesar told her as he took the hairband out his pocket to tie up his dreads, needing everything away from his face. From the way Cindy stepped off the ice so causally, he guessed she had some sort of experience, whether it was a good or bad thing, they were about to find out.

"Damn, sorry. Only one of us is dropping today." She teased. "Hold my hand, I'll teach you."

"Nah its cool. I go-" Caesar tried to say he had it but he slipped again. "You know what, I'll take you up on that offer."

She laughed as she felt his iron grip on her hand. "Ok, one foot in front of the other. Allow yourself to glide across the ice. Just think of it as roller skating and you'll be fine."

"Roller skating is not this cold."

"Stop being a baby and come on." Cindy turned so she was skating backwards and holding onto his hands. She saw his eyes going down to his feet. "Don't look down! That's going to throw your shit off. Look me in my eyes."

"How do you even know how to do this? I never took you as an ice skater." Caesar curiously questioned as he looked her in the eyes as she said to.

Cindy sighed. "My mom made me join an ice-skating class when I was 9 as one of her many ways to try and get me to be 'a proper girl' as she liked to say. She wanted a daughter but not one that would end up being like a son."

"Shit, I'm sorry, I should've asked before coming. I didn't know you wouldn't like it." Caesar apologised but stopped when he saw Cindy shaking her head.

"It's fine. You didn't know. Plus, I don't mind ice skating. I like the cold."

"Ok Elsa." Caesar joked, lighting the mood.

She rolled her icy blue eyes but laughed. "You're so annoying you know that? And cheesy. And a weirdo."

He faked being hurt. "Wow Cynthia, I am hurt. I think you froze my heart."

"Call me Cynthia or reference Else again and I will let go of you right now."

"Ok, ok. I take it back." Caesar quickly apologised, not wanting to be left on his own and potential fall on his ass.

"Glad we're on the same page." She sent him a not-so-innocent smile his way as she got him to retract what he said. She had come to the conclusion years ago that she would always have beef with her full name. "See, without even realising, you made it around perfectly fine. You didn't fall on your ass."

Caesar let out a deep sigh as he looked around. "Good because that would've been terrible to see a big black man dropping on his ass doing ice skating."

"Ain't no shame in a little embarrassment."

"You're saying it like you won't skate away and leave me."

"I mean... you're not wrong."

Caesar pretended to cry. "Wow, I never knew Elsa was this mean."

"Ugh, don't call me Elsa."

"Elsa."

Cindy lightly punched him in the arm. "Stop."

"I'm going to tell Riley to change your name from Christiana to Elsa."

"You wouldn't." She squinted her eyes at him but all he did was smirk.

"Oh you know I would."

She thought about hitting him again when she thought of something else to do and smirked. "Let's have a race."

He smirked back at her. "Sure, as soon as we leave."

"Nah uh. Right here, right now, on the ice. Two laps. Winner gets the final say in this little disagreement."

Caesar held out his hand for a handshake, not one to back down from a challenge even though he had just learned to ice skate, barely at that. "Ok." The two stood side by side. "Imma count down since you will cheat." Cindy rolled her eyes at the comment but got ready either way. She knew she was going to leave him in her dust anyway but it was cute to see he thought he had a chance. "On your marks... get set... go!"

The two took off and Cindy was by far ahead. Caesar only had one trip around the whole ice-skating rink and that was with the help of Cindy. Neither of them understood why he would agree to the challenge. He should've just backed out while he could.

Cindy was on her second lap while Caesar was half way on his first.

She skated by and slapped him on the ass, making him jump and tense from the sudden feeling. "Ay! Don't do that to a nigga!"

"Haha!" She laughed as she watched him try and catch up to her now that she slapped him. "Come on Caes! At least give me something to work for."

"Black people don't do ice."

"Stop being a baby Caesar."

"I'm not being a baby." He stood on the ice with his arms crossed and a pout on his face.

Cindy crossed her own arms with a raised eyebrow. "Oh really?"

"Really."

She skating closer to him. "You sure?"

He licked his lips in anticipation. The ghost of a smile on her lips were inviting his own to rest on hers.

"Very much so."

He leaned down to capture her lips when she skated away from him at the last second. The sudden movement caught Caesar off guard, making his knees buckle. "Bombo!" He exclaimed as he tried his best to regain his footing.

Cindy burst out in laughter as she watched her man cling onto the side for dear life. "I'm deceased!"

"Not funny Cynthia."

"But it was Michael."

Caesar shook his head but couldn't help but chuckle a little. To anyone on the outside. She looked like a girl you wouldn't want to cross, which was true but he got to see the sweet and innocent side of her. When he was first trying to make a move on her, he had to admit that it was hard. She refused to let him get close but after her shift at Empire, she gave him a chance and he was happy that she did. He wanted to show her that he meant serious business and wanted to try have a relationship with her and not anything small. Caesar had to admit that he has never seen his group of friends become so serious over one girl before. Hiro had two serious relationships, Huey had one and then there was him and Riley who played the game ever since they were teens. Now, they both only had one female in their line of sight who was about to have them completely wrapped around their finger.

"Caes you alright?" Cindy asked as she saw him space out. It was not like him to be so quiet.

He turned his attention back to Cindy. "Yeah I'm good. Just thinking about how lucky I am being here with you."

A light blush formed on Cindy's pale cheeks which she could blame on the cold temperature if teased about it. Caesar was a smooth talker and it had big effects on her when she finally listened to what he was saying rather than ignoring it. She blocked out all the sweet things he would say to her in the beginning but now she was listening and she had no idea how to react, so her first reaction was to blush. "I- I'm glad I'm here with you."

He let a large grin spread across his face. "I know, everyone says that."

"And then you had to ruin it." She rolled her eyes and they both just laughed.

Just then, an older white couple skated past them. It wouldn't have been a problem but they were giving the new couple a look of disapproval. Caesar and Cindy could feel the judgement radiating off them.

"Disgusting." They heard the female say under his breath.

Instantly, Caesar got defensive. "Whatchu say?!"

People started to look over at Caesar who started to get angry. Cindy didn't want the issue to escalate since she was actually enjoying herself and didn't feel like slapping someone upside the head so she stepped in before it had the chance to.

"Don't let them get the best of you. They're lucky I'm actually having a good time or I would've dragged their ass across the fucking ice and kicked them with the bottom of my skate in their necks." Cindy said the last sentence loud enough for the couple to hear as an indirect warning which worked.

They heard. The older couple heard as well as people that were going past who looked on in interest at the drama that could be brewing. The other couple that decided to voice their unnecessary opinion sent the two a glare before skating off the ice rink and leaving with not another word.

Cindy continued to glare at the spot they just left until she heard Caesar kiss his teeth. "You alright?" She asked as she turned to him. She could see he was annoyed.

"Man people can be so negative for no damn reason sometimes." He sighed. "You know the reason they most likely said that right?"

Cindy scratched her neck. She knew this was something that needed to be brough up from the start but she didn't expect it to be this soon.

"Maybe because you're black and I'm white." She nodded lightly. "Yeah I've gotten that a few times. Dated two black guys in the past, same problem and look at least once. It's very annoying but something I won't ignore because people need to be put in their place."

"That's right. I'm probably going to get heat for dating a white girl, you know, being called a sell out and everything."

"It's not your fault who you like."

"I honestly wish it was that simple."

They both sighed before looking at everyone else skating past them. Relationships are never easy, being in an interracial relationship was not going to be easy. Many people still had issues with it to this day for different reasons. Caesar understood that him being with a white woman was going to seem like a slap in the face to some black women and it was nothing like that. He has seen this issue come up many times when there was a black male celebrity that was married to a white woman.

He didn't care the race of whoever he dated, if he liked you, he liked you, that was it. That was all he really cared about. He never cared for people having their opinions on things they didn't know about but all he would have to say when the time came was that him being with someone outside his race doesn't mean he hated black girls or would put them down. He will continue to uplift the very person who brought him into the world as well as all the other sisters, where ever they were in the world. He will always love them and protect them, no matter who he was dating. He knew it was going to be a journey.

"You know, I think we should get out of here."

"You don't like it?"

"It's not that Caesar, I already told you that I liked this surprise. It was sweet. I'm just tired of watching your knees buckle like you're a deer. I think we should get back on dry land." She tried to lighten the mood and it seemed to work.

He rolled his eyes. "Haha very funny. Let's go."

Caesar started to turn towards the exit when he felt Cindy tug his hand. "One more lap, then we can leave. We can go get some cocktails and steak or some shit."

"Ohh, I see you wanna get a little fancy to end the night."

"More like tipsy but that works too."

"Alright fine."

Cindy went to skate off when Caesar grabbed her hand this time around. "I don't know where you're going Elsa. You best hold my hand and if you let it go, we're going to have problems."

"You know I can't stand you sometimes." She laughed at his cringing pun that he just had to throw in, no matter how many times she told him to stop with the Frozen references. "Fine, come on Sven."

"What nigga is-" Caesar went to ask when he remembered the other characters in the film he was forced to watch with his cousins. "Woooooooow. We doing niggas like that?"

"Come on Caes I wanna taste some cocktails!" Cindy pulled him along while laughing her head at how fake his hurt he sounded.

"I mean you can taste this co-"

"Just skate!"

After a struggling lap, the two walked out hand in hand laughing at whatever Caesar's brain decided to blurt out and made their way to the closest bar to end their nights with some cocktails. They already forgotten about their little incident earlier and was back in their own worlds. Caesar was actually thankful they didn't stay long because he felt it in his spirt that his behind was going to land on some cold ice and he did not want to feel that. He was mostly glad that Cindy at least enjoyed herself for the time they did spend ice skating. Now, he was happy that he didn't have to skate on the slippery ice and go and enjoy the company of his girlfriend over some cocktails.

It was really his ideal night and he was glad he had Cindy to share it with.

* * *

"So where we going since we're the only one that actually dressed up?"

"We're not far, just have to wait and see."

"Surprises give me anxiety Huey."

"Jazmine, just hold on a little longer."

Jazmine playfully pouted and crossed her arms from the passenger seat of Huey's pitch-black car. The two have been driving for about 15 minutes and Jazmine was already fidgety. When they were all getting picked up for their dates, her friends were all wearing casual but cute outfits while Jazmine was told to dress up so she picked out a simple but classy dress with heels. Even Huey was dressed different from the guys. She really wanted to know where they were going.

"How much longer we got left?" She asked for the 5th time already.

Huey looked over and smirked before looking back at the road, leaving her with no answer. He liked seeing the anticipation in her eyes as he could see them darting around the road trying to figure out where they were going to. He knew she had no clue where they were going.

"Hmph. Fine." She pulled down the mirror and started to check her hair when an idea popped in her head. She knew if she really wanted to find out where they were going, she had to break him.

She slowly pushed the mirror back up and turned to face Huey. She moved her hand over the gearshift and rested it on his thigh, catching him off guard.

"Jazmine... don't start something you won't be able to finish." He warned her.

She smirked as she heard his voice shake a little when he said her name. She moved her hand up higher and instantly felt him tense, making her giggle.

"Is someone trying to control themselves?" Jazmine mockingly asked the driver.

Huey cleared his throat and pushed his foot on the acceleration a bit more. They were close to their destination, he could hold himself back. Oh how badly he wanted to take her right here, right now in his car. All he had to do was push his seat back and have her jump in his lap and onto his- no. He needed to stop thinking like that. When he got the pleasure to please and satisfy Jazmine in ways she wouldn't be able to comprehend after, was not going to happen in his car. No, it was going to be somewhere she could happily spill all her-

"We're here." He hastily announced before Jazmine's wondering hand could go up any further. His mind was spinning and he had to do his best to regain some sense. Imagine a few simple touches could make Huey's knees tremble like never before. It made him wonder if she was a witch or something because no one should have such control over another person.

Jazmine was no longer focused on her location and destination of her hand and focused on their surroundings. They were in a parking lot but to what, she did not know, she was still confused. "Where are we?" She asked and looked over at Huey for the answer. She was only met with a smirk and then the back of his neck as he stepped out the car. She sat and watched Huey come around to her side to open the door, awaiting some type of answer. "You still not going to tell me?"

"I don't need to tell you when we're here. Maybe if you stopped asking questions, we could be inside by now."

Jazmine rolled her eyes at his cheeky comment but happily accepted his hand that he held out for her to take a hold of. They walked in silence, excluding the sound of her heels on the concrete, hand in hand. Huey was his usual calm self while Jazmine was secretly bubbling with anxious thoughts even more than she was in the beginning. She couldn't wait any longer so she picked up the pace towards the building to get inside and see what awaited her on the other side.

They got to the door which Huey held open for her and they walked inside.

"Oh my..." Jazmine softly gasped as she stepped into the warm and cosy building. Smooth and calming jazz was playing throughout the room as she took everything in. It was nothing she had ever been to before. It was breath taking.

The grey and white walls where filled with paintings, drawings and photography while the floor had different sculptures planted around the space from what they could see. There were a good few people in their, sipping champagne and discussing quietly at each art piece.

"Huey... you took me to an art gallery?" Jazmine asked softly, even though she already knew the answer to it. It was obvious but she was so surprised, she had to ask the obvious.

He shrugged casually but deep down inside he was nervous that she didn't like the idea. His friends and brother had taken their girls out to lively places while he picked the quiet place. He hoped Jazmine liked it. "Something different for a night out."

"I never took you as an artsy person."

"That's because I'm not, that's more Riley's thing. As a matter of fact, this is his right here." Huey pulled her over to one of the first canvases on the left. He pointed to a simple but amazing spray painting. It was of a pair of big red lips on a black background that had grillz and biting a bullet. "He completed this about a year ago." Huey told her.

Jazmine walked over to read the caption in front of the art. "Riley Freeman, Chicago born and raised. A real gangster. His love for grillz and ladies really came into play as he expresses the classic saying 'bite the bullet'. Only the real can recognise the realness of this art." She read out loud. "Yeah that last bit sounded like Riley. How long did it take him? I never knew he could do art and so well at that!"

"I say about 4 months or something like that, I don't know and he's always been into it since we were kids. He was doing art before boxing so that kept him out of trouble for a while. No one would've thought he would end up this good." Huey explained to her.

Jazmine slightly frowned at that, she didn't like when people underestimated others. She got that a lot growing up and it made her insecure. Now as a woman, she has overcome her insecurity but it wasn't to say it wouldn't creep up every now and then in stressful situation but she was doing much better than before. She just wished people would have more faith in each other instead of putting them down. For some reason, people found it easier to spread hate rather than love. "Well that's not nice. Did you believe in him?"

"In the beginning, no." Huey admitted but continued as he saw the slight disappointment in Jazmine's face. "But as time went on, I did. Although I never told that to his face. I saw he was actually caring for his work. He still does it every now and then back at our parents so he can hide away from us. This is actually his first art work he has put in a gallery. Its black owned which is one of the reasons why I thought I should bring you here. See the art that is in the streets of Chicago but something people fail to see."

Jazmine began to smile as she watched him talk about his brother all while only stealing a few glances her way before looking at the painting. She knew the boys rarely or never have said it out loud to each other but you could really tell they loved each other. They had each other's backs throughout anything. "I really like this, I can't wait to see more of the art."

Before Huey could reply, a man came over with a tray of tall champagne classes, filled with the bubbly drink. "Champagne?"

The couple took a glass each and thanked the man. Huey gave him a quick tip before turning back to the woman of the day.

"Here's to a wonderful night." Jazmine spoke into existence and leaned her glass forward, Huey following suit, making their glass touch before taking a sip. "Hm, this taste good." She leaned up to kiss Huey on the cheek, considering she was still shorter than him even in her heels. "Let's go see what else is here."

They walked away with one hand holding a champagne glass and the other holding the others hand over to the next painting, already observing and interrupting the art. Not many people could do these types of dates but it was something Jazmine appreciated. Over the time she has known Huey, she knows he is someone who analyse and thinks a lot, he liked to interpret and pick apart different things and it was something she enjoyed listening to. He would give off facts and hard information while she would speak about the creatively, freeness and detail of the art. Two different perspectives that meant for an interesting conversation. It was their way of getting to know each other on a different level by seeing how the other worked, how the other thought and it was better than they could ever imagine. It was the first time Jazmine has ever been on a date like this, it just goes to show the difference between Huey and the other boys she has dated. She called them boys because this was a real man. A strong, intelligent, beautiful black man. She was winning in so many areas.

"So, what do you think of this?"

Hearing his soothing deep voice brought her out of her trace about him and she turned her attention to the man of the day. "Huh?"

Huey smirked at her. "Day dreaming about me, are we?"

She began to blush. 'How did he know?! Can he read my mind? Creepy...' She thought to herself before finally opening her mouth to say something back.

"I'm not trying to get your head any bigger so I am going to turn my attention back to the art." She held her head high in a playful manor before turning to the art. Her breath instantly caught in her throat. It was truly one of the most breath-taking pieces she has seen all night. It was a painting of 7 different featureless women of different shades of melanin. They all had their own unique hairstyle, colour and even texture, all being seen in one painting. She looked at the one with the skin tone that was closets to her shade and lightly laughed. "That one even has my go to hairstyle, two afro puffs. I remember how much I hated my type for hair for the longest time. Begging my parents to straighten my hair so I could have straight hair like my mother. Being told by other kids my hair looked like a bird's nest. I wanted to damage or even cut my hair so badly that I would cry so much. Then sometime during my teens, with the influence of my friends and other factors, I got my shit together and started to love my hair and love myself for who I was. I am a biracial woman who is more than just that and starting to love my hair and managing it really got me to be a better person today."

"I understand just what you're saying." A shorter woman with dark skin and a short, thick afro walked up to the couple catching them off guard but they all put their attention back on the painting within seconds. "I had dark skin, thick thighs and thick hair in middle school? Yeah I was just asking to get bullied. In a time where being pale, skinny and having straight hair was the norm. My momma hot combed my hair one time and it didn't even last 3 hours. She swore to never do it again because it was a waste of time which I am now grateful for, even if it was because she wanted to save time, it saved me from damaging my hair, just like you. Little girls with melanin need to have role models to see their hair is everything and nothing to be ashamed about. We can't let our children grow up insecure about what grows from our own scalp like we did..." She sighed and turned to the couple and smiled. "I apologise for just interrupted like that."

Jazmine shook her head and shared the smile and held out her hand. "Don't you worry. I'm Jazmine. It's nice to meet you."

The woman happily accepted. "Same to you, I'm Victoria." She took a glance at the man behind Jazmine and smirked. "When was you going to introduce me to your new girlfriend Huey?"

"Didn't get a chance." Huey stepped up and wrapped his arm around Jazmine's waist, making Victoria's eyes grow wide. For as long as she has known him, she knew he was never one for PDA. "Victoria, this is Jazmine, my girlfriend. Jazmine, this is Victoria. She went to the same high school as us but was two years above me and the guys. She also owns this gallery."

"Yup, even dated their friend Hiro for a little while." She told Jazmine casually, making it her turn to make her eyes go wide.

"You dated Hiro?" She questioned shocked.

Victoria laughed. "Don't look so shocked. Hiro was one of those Asian boys with swag that girls wanted to get a chance just to talk to him. He didn't even realise he was getting some hot sauce and collard greens type of flavour in his style as he hanged out with the niggas of all niggas."

"Woow, that's crazy to know. He's currently dating my friend Ming. Well my friends are dating Huey's friends and brother."

"Damn that is crazy." She chuckled. "But don't worry girl, I am happily engaged and on baby number 2." She rubbed her stomach, making Jazmine realise the small bump on her stomach.

Jazmine gasped excitedly. "Congratulations! You must be excited! Do you know if you're having a boy or girl?"

Victoria loved the energy Jazmine was giving off, even if she was surprised to see she was with the person that was the definition of monotone. "I have a 6-year-old daughter and I am about to have my first son in 4 months' time." She informed the dancer.

"Aww I am so happy for you. Aren't you happy for her Huey?"

Hearing Jazmine say his name made him jump back into the conversation. "Uh yeah, congrats."

"Thank you guys and thank you for coming."

"I am so happy Huey brought be here! These paintings are seriously beautiful." Jazmine complemented the room as she looked around once again, really aw struck at the work.

Victoria smiled at the woman's enthusiasm, it was on the level of a child but not on a level that it was creepy or overbearing. "The painting you was just looking at is my own."

"Seriously? That is amazing! You are so talented. I would love a couple of my own." Jazmine praised again as she thought out loud. The painting was truly beautiful to look at.

"Done." Huey spoke, making Jazmine look at him confused. "How much for it?"

"Huey, what are you doing?" Jazmine asked as she saw him reach into his pocket. He pulled out a roll of cash that she somehow missed. There was so much there she had no clue how she missed it.

"You said you liked it so I am going to buy it for you." He told her as if it was the simplest thing he has said all night. The sentence was simple, it was just the context was lacking.

"How do you know this is for sale?" Jazmine crossed her arms as she looked at him.

Victoria couldn't help but laugh at the question. "Oh honey, art is always for sale."

Huey smirked. "See. No problem."

"You don't have to." Jazmine sighed, not really wanting him to make a big fuss out of her simply liking some art.

"I know I don't but I want to." He unrolled the cash and started counting. Soon, he separated some of the cash and handed the notes he counted out in lightning speed over to the artist. "500 enough?"

Victoria's eyes grew wide as she counted the money. This was the most she has ever sold a painting! "This- this is more than enough, I- um, thank you! Seriously. I was selling this for much less, you can take some of it back if you wish."

Huey shook his head. "Nah, keep it as a baby gift or whatever."

"Baby shower gift." Jazmine whispered as she corrected him.

"Yeah that."

"You know... I knew you was a good nigga. I always knew that about you. Obviously, besides all the killing and shit, you a real nigga."

"I can agree on that." Jazmine smiled and gave Huey another light kiss on the cheek. "Thank you baby."

"It's nothing... now come on, we still got another thing to do." Huey started to lightly pull Jazmine away from the painting that he had just purchased for her.

"Huh? Where we going?"

Victoria chuckled at the confusion on his girlfriend's face. "Have fun!" She called out as she watched them fade into the back of the gallery, already knowing where they were going to and hoping Jazmine liked the effort Huey put in for their date.

"Close your eyes."

"Why? Is this where you have been planning on killing me all along? Trying not to look me in my ey-"

"Jazmine." Huey cut her off sternly as they stopped in front of a door.

"Sorry! I told you surprises make me anxious." She apologised. They were standing in a stairwell that had more art work plastered on the walls which made Jazmine a little comfortable knowing people actually did come up this way from time to time.

"Don't you trust me?" He asked her. He saw the slight frown that landed on her lips and waited for her to answer.

"Of course I do, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be rude." She apologised once again.

He kissed her forehead before looking her in her emerald green eyes. "No need to apologise. It's fine. Now, close your eyes."

She sighed but did as she was told. She allowed Huey to guide her the rest of the way with her hand gripped tightly around his. She slightly shivered as she felt the autumn night of Chicago, making her realise they were outside.

"Open."

Jazmine heard the simple instruction and became breathless for the second time during the night. "Huey! I love it!" She spun around to wrap her arms around his neck. She wanted to wrap her legs around him so bad but then her dress would've ridden up. Huey smirked, glad that his surprise went well and wrapped his own arms around her waist, holding her close.

They were out on the roof that had beautiful sensory of the city. There was a set table with candles and rose petals that trailed off onto the floor towards where they were standing as a little pathway. Hand and hand, they walked closer to the table and Huey guided her to her seat where a card sat on her plate with her name written in cursives. "Aww this is so cuteeeee."

"I'm guessing you like it then." Huey smirked as he held out the chair for her. Once she was seated, he walked to his own chair and sat.

"I mean of course! I never took you as a romantic person." She told him truthfully.

"That's because I'm not but I know these types of gestures are things you like. As long as you like it, I will do it for you." He answered genuinely.

Jazmine began to tear up as she heard Huey say that to her. They had gone on a dinner date in the beginning of them getting to know each other but at first it was to make up for the crazy night before, now it was intentional. They knew they were on a date and it was planned and thought out. She couldn't wait to find out what else he had in store for her in future. "Thank you so much."

"You haven't even seen anything yet." He pulled out his phone and began typing before putting his phone away. "Champagne?"

She nodded. He reached under the table and pulled out the bottle of champagne that was chilling on ice. He popped it and began to pour the bubbly in her glass then his own. Once done, they lifted their glasses. "To new beginnings." Jazmine toasted to something different for a second time that night.

"To new beginnings." Huey repeated.

As their glasses met in clink, the door opened and two waiters came out with a plate each that was covered.

"Ohh fancy." Jazmine rubbed her hands together excitedly. "Thank you." Huey pulled off the covers and presented a vegetarian pasta meal. Jazmine could feel her mouth-watering at the sight and now the smell of it as it hit her nose. "Did the girls tell you I have been craving this?" He nodded, making Jazmine laugh. "You guys are so sneaky."

They dove into their meal, taking moments to appreciate the flavours in the mouth. "This is so good. Where is it from?"

"There is a vegetarian restaurant around the block." He shrugged.

"Well I will make it my mission to go back there to actually sit inside and see what else they can do. We should definitely go there soon. Like- wait, isn't your birthday next week?" Jazmine cut herself off as she thought about the month they were in.

"No." He tried to deny but she knew better. She was always good at remembering people's birthdays.

She checked the date on her phone before giving him a disappointed look. "Really? You were going to try and hide that from me?"

He shrugged as he took a sip of his drink. "You would've found out soon enough anyway. Its just another year closer to death anyway."

"Way to be dark." Jazmine playfully rolled her eyes. "I hope you don't say that to no children."

"Dante and Anthony already warned me about that."

Jazmine let out a full belly laugh, not expecting that answer from him. "I can't stand you! Leave them poor babies alone."

"They going to find out at some point." He said casually as if it was the easiest concept in the world. He seemed to have an answer for almost everything.

"I will never understand how your mind works." She shook her head light heartedly. "What do you want for your birthday?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing?"

"Nothing."

"You must want something."

"Nope."

"I'm getting you something."

"You don't have to."

"But I am."

Huey shook his head this time. There was no point in trying to argue, she was as stubborn as he was and she loved celebrations. He was going to receive something from her one way or another however, what it was, she wasn't sure. She needed to find something quick, she only had a couple of days.

Jazmine felt her phone go off and took a quick glance which she already knew she was going to ignore anyway but paused when she saw the message.

_Jayden: Hey JD, I see you're in Chicago. We should meet up soon, can't wait to see you xx_

'Fuck... I keep forgetting about him.' Jazmine cursed in her head. She honestly forget about him. She has been so caught up in starting her new relationship with Huey, she forgot she sort of led on her ex by having sex with him constantly. Curse her high sex drive.

"You alright?" Huey had seen the colour slowly drain from her face as she read the text she got. "Do you need to leave?"

She shook her head. "No no, it's just... Jayden just sent me a text." She confessed. There was no point in lying, she didn't want there to be lying in their relationship already. It was also something that would need to be addressed at some point, they both had a little baggage on them.

"What did he say?" He felt himself get tense and had to try and calm himself down. This is not what he wanted to hear about on their night out but either way, this guy needed to know that he was the past and Huey was now Jazmine's future, he should quit while he's ahead.

"Just that he heard I was back and that he wants to see me."

"What you going to tell him?"

Jazmine was shocked at the question, she thought it was obvious what she was going to do. "Uhm, tell him that there is nothing happening between us anymore and that I am in a relationship with you."

"Ok."

"Ok? Nothing else?" He shrugged at her. "Not, 'you should've just kept your legs closed Jazmine, how could you run back to your ex just to have sex?' Nothing?"

Huey refilled their glasses with more champagne as the waiters came back to take their empty plates and bring out dessert. "I won't judge you for what you do with your own body. You're a grown, capable woman. You did what you did because you wanted to, I'm in no place to judge. I did the same thing, only I cut her out as quick as I got her back in and she wasn't an ex, just a past time which sounds even worse."

"I think going back to an ex who obvious still has feelings for you is worse." Jazmine lightly joked before laughing. "I need to tell him that there can never be an us but I need to do it face to face."

"Do you want me to come when you do it?" He offered but she shook her head at the question. She knew the two in a room together will cause there to be an increase in testosterone and problems and she had no patience to witness any of that.

"Nah, this is something I'm just going to have to do on my own."

"Good, saves me from putting your friend in the hospital for trying to fight me. He has kids to teach." Huey smirked.

Jazmine burst out of laughter, not expecting to hear Huey say that. "You're something else."

"But you love it." He joked but all she did was smile at first.

"Yeah I think I do."

They held onto each other's gaze for a few more seconds, feeling comfort in the other's eyes. Suddenly, Huey's phone went off, just as the dessert, which was chocolate cake and ice cream, came out.

"Answer it, it must be important." Jazmine encouraged him as she saw his face change like how it did when he had to handle business. "Go on."

He slightly nodded before answering the phone while Jazmine dove into her sweet dessert. The flavours tasted so good on her tongue.

"Yeah... give the product to the runners, they'll know what to do. Remind them to be careful, the feds are more active and I don't have time to be having our lawyers in and out all night. That nigga Dre can only let so much of them off at a time. Just keep low and strapped up at all time. I don't want a repeat of last week. I got shit to do, don't call again." Huey hung up and immediately turned his attention back to Jazmine.

"Everything alright?"

"Yeah, nothing my people can't take care of."

"You really care about the gang, don't you?" Jazmine suddenly asked, licking the chocolate off her fork.

Huey looked surprised at the question but answered it either way, trying not to be turned on by her licking the fork, wishing it was him. "Yeah, we're more than a gang, we're a family." He started to eat his cake. He wasn't one for dessert, especially one as sweet as this but he did it for Jazmine. "We take care for each other, look out for one another. Loyalty is an important part of the Panthers. It's something my past grandparents have implemented and I will continue honouring that because I feel many people in our generation have forgotten what loyalty really means and looks like." Half way through his explanation, he took a piece of the cake with some ice cream on it and held it out towards Jazmine, who happily accepted, humming at the delicious taste. Food always tasted better from someone else's plate. "People on the outside only care about the killing and the drug dealing that happens but we're more than that. We're protectors. Just like the Blood and Crip's once were. They were built to protect their communicates but once the government interfered and fucked everything up with drugs, money and guns, everything turned into a blood bath for no reason. We try and avoid that shit but it's hard to, we're not the only gang in the city, that's a fact but our main principle is protection, we want to protect our own while also trying to build."

Jazmine listened to him closely. She had heard a little bit about what happened in the past, especially about the crack cocaine era which was a devastating time for many black people. She could see he didn't want the past to repeat itself. "How so?"

"Business. Generational wealth. Having the black dollar circulate in the community." He started before going on to explain. "I have a night club and strip club which is just the start. I want to buy land and create my own real estate, have my own store all that. Providing jobs and rebuilding the city the best way I can."

"Wow... that's amazing." Jazmine was generally interested about what he was saying. It was nice that Huey was branching out to more things. He knew he had what it takes to own a business, multiple at that. He was doing well with Empire and The Blue Moon already, she couldn't wait to see what else he could do. He just always had a businessman's mindset.

"It's going to take some time but I feel good about it. I'm only going to be 26, there's no race." He concluded.

"That's right. Everyone is busy trying to get rich quick when it all really takes time and we're still young. The girls and I have been discussing stuff and we will see how it all goes."

"Good. Remember, if you need anything, you know where to find me."

Jazmine gave him a smile. She decided to get out her seat, walked over to where he was and find a new seat in his lap. Her new favourite spot. She placed a hand on his chest as she leaned down, capturing his lips with her own. The kiss was slow, passionate and sweet as they could taste the chocolate cake in the others mouth. His hand travelled around her body, wanting to feel every part of her on him.

"I won't need to find you if you're right next to me." She whispered against his lips.

"Glad you know... want to get out of here?"

Jazmine pulled away and looked at the table which had nothing left but empty plates and glasses. "Well we are finished..."

"Alright, let's go."

They stood and walked out the art gallery hand in hand, making sure they said their goodbye to the owner. The painting Huey had purchased for Jazmine was waiting for them by the entrance which they happily accepted and carried out.

"Wanna come back to my place?" Huey asked Jazmine as they got to his car, the painting sitting comfortably in the back.

She nodded. "Sure. We can watch a movie and cuddle." He agreed and got into the driver's seat to drive back to his house. The whole time Jazmine was frustrated that mother nature decided to stick around a day longer than usual because if she didn't, Huey was definitely going to get all of her. Sadly, he had to wait for another day and she couldn't wait for that day to happen.

Jazmine felt a hand on her lap and turned to look at the culprit who had his eyes glued on the road. He slowly started stroking her exposed thigh, making her shiver from the touch. 'Why does my period have to be the biggest cock block?!' She screamed in her head but out loud she just sighed, knowing there was nothing she could do. Instead, she settled on resting her own hand over his and watch the city go past them.

He just continued to surprise her at how different he acted with her compared to others. He treated her with care and special without hesitation. He put her needs and likes before his own. If this was just the beginning, the want to see their relationship months down the line is crazy just to think about it. There was so much to happen.

It was a beautiful night and she didn't want it to end. She was just happy she got to spend the night in his arm. Hopefully soon, it will become an every night thing, she would love to have Huey hold her every night. It feel so good to be next to him. A smile formed on her lips just thinking about it, he was really driving her insane.

* * *

On the other side of the city, Riley decided to take Royalty somewhere they could have fun and laugh at. He decided to go to a carnival, one he has been going to since he was a kid. He would never admit it out loud but he loved these type of places. The excitement, the food, the games, everything. He wanted Royalty to experience a part of him tonight.

"You so fine." Riley told her as he looked her up and down. All she had on was a simple jeans, t-shirt and sneakers but looked so good wearing it.

Royalty giggled and tried to hide her face, careful to not bend her eyelashes. "Stop lying."

"But a nigga ain't even lie." He pulled her arms down so he could finally see her face again. "Hm, so fine." He repeated to emphasise how good she looked to him or to anyone that could see her at that fact.

"I could say the same to you. I always wanted a set of grillz. They make you look extra sexy by the way." Royalty pulled down Riley's lips with her thumb to look at the gold bottom grillz he had put on for the night.

"These are just my basic set, you should see my others but I can talk to my guy and he could do some for you. Anything you want, gold, silver, diamonds, one, five, anything, I got you." Riley told her as they made their way inside the carnival after making sure they had everything they needed.

"Just like that?"

"Just like that."

"Lovely..." Royalty trailed off, already thinking about what type of grillz she wanted to get. She had the money to do it but she just never got some, she guessed now was the best time to get one so she could match with her mans. Well, not her man yet but soon. They still haven't made it official but when the moment came, she was ready. He just needed to show he was ready to commit.

"What you wanna do first?"

"Hmm, mi nah know." She answered. When Riley didn't say anything, she looked over at him confused. He was just staring at her, not like how he was looking at her a few seconds ago, it was different. "What? Is there something on my face?"

He snapped out of his gaze to snicker as he saw the worry on her face but knew he had to reassure her before she panicked. "Nah nah you cool. It's just I love it when you talk in your accent. Why don't you talk with it more often?"

Hearing that made her heat up, not expecting him to comment on that. "Uh, thank you and ever since I was young, we would be taught 'proper English' in school back home so I know how to switch up my accent whenever I need to. When I came to the states, the longer I spent here the more it became natural but the Jamaican dialect and all that will always be my first. It makes it easier for people to understand me too because I can talk fast when I speak Patois." She explained to him. Seeing him genuinely interested made her feel butterflies in her stomach, she could see the effort he was putting in and it was sweet to witness.

"Well when you with me you don't need to put on anything. If we finna do this, I'm gon' need some practice so I know if your people are cussing me out or not so for the rest of the night, I want to hear you OG accent." Riley told her playfully, making her laugh.

"Fine but trust me, you will know if they're cussing you out... anyway, let's get to the fake carnival you brought me to."

Riley looked at her offended. "Fake? Girl watchu mean fake?"

"I have so much to teach you about Caribbean culture. This is going to be fun, by the end of it, you will love it but I will tell you another time, for now, show me some skills." She lightly nudged him towards one of the shooting games.

"Well what a lovely couple we have here! All you have to do is shoot 7 of the ducks in 20 seconds. If you get that, then you win a big price. Get 5 or 6, you get a small prize, anything less you get nothing. Why don't you win the misses something unless you're not man enough?" The man at the booth instigated without missing a beat as he saw Royalty and Riley step closer to his booth.

Riley squinted his eyes at the man, immediate falling into his trap. There was one thing you should know about Riley, you should never question his masculinity, he hated that. Now, he had to prove the man wrong. "Ok. Now you gotta see how a real nigga be. I bet I can shoot every one of them damn ducks in the 20 seconds."

The man laughed at Riley's confidence, finding it admirable. He got him to come over but this was even more than what he bargained for, entertaining him. "Impossible."

Riley raised an eyebrow while Royalty just watched on in amusement. "You sure? There're only about 15 ducks. Barely over a second for each duck. If I get them all, you give my girl any prize she wants and I get to keep my money." Riley pulled out a five-dollar bill. "Abraham is waiting."

"Deal." They shook on it and he smirked. He got money and got to see the humiliation on the man's face when he lost in front of his girlfriend. It was going to be very funny to watch, he decided to bring around an audience. "Ladies and gentlemen! Come and see the man who claims he can shoot all 15 ducks within 20 seconds, which has never been done before! Will he be able to succeed or will he crack under pressure?!"

People around heard the announcement and made their way over to the booth, interested to see what the commotion was all about.

Royalty shook her head at the man. "You are so sneaky." The man just laughed again. She turned to Riley who picked up the gun that he had to use. "You don't have to do it you know, you don't have to prove yourself to anyone."

"Nah its cool, I'm going to show him what a real nigga looks like." He winked at Royalty before turning back to the man. "Let's go."

"Alright...3 2 1 go!"

Riley pulled the trigger and one by one, a duck was shot down as it moved across the booth. 10 seconds left and 5 ducks left.

"He's actually going to do it."

"That's crazy."

"Awesome!"

The time ended and the ducks were all shot down.

Riley held a big smirk on his face as everyone began to clap around him but he just looked at the worker, making sure he could see him in all his glory. "You were saying?"

The man in the booth tried to hide how upset he was but it was easy to see he wasn't pleased on the outcome. "Congratulations..."

"Haha!" Royalty stuck her tongue out childishly at the worker before resting her hand on her chin, looking over the prizes she was about to pick. "Hmm, I'll take that duck and that red teddy bear, please and thanks." She told him, remembering the deal he and Riley made.

"You heard the lady. Pay up." Riley picked up his 5 dollars he put down and put it straight back into his pocket. The man turned and got the prizes Royalty requested with a frown on his face. "You know what, for that stank ass attitude, give my lady something else too. You best do it, you already seen what I can do with a fake ass gun." Riley threatened. He sighed and pulled down another toy, this time, he handed her a stuffed lion. "That's what I like, come on girl."

With full arms, Royalty and Riley turned away from the embarrassed man and made their way over to somewhere else. "I didn't know you was that good, you really spent a lot of time here."

Riley shrugged. "I guess but I also handle guns for a living so that helped."

"I guess so... maybe we should go back to the car to put these back." She suggested, referring to how full her arms were becoming already.

"Look, why don't we play more games, win as much prizes as we can and then put it in the car. Then we can come back, eat and go on rides. Deal?"

Royalty smiled, liking the idea. "Deal."

And that's exactly what they did. Riley smashed it at the basketball game with just as much ease as the shooting game while Royalty cheered by his side, already looking at the basketball she was going to get for his prize. Royalty knew Riley could be playful and competitive but this was different levels, he didn't miss, at all! He was winning game after game that she just had to look at what prize she wanted when they stepped up to the booth. She did play some herself but she found more joy in watching Riley getting excited over the games. After nearly clearing out all the games and stuffing their prizes in the car, they went back to go on every ride possible. The whole time they screamed and laughed at each other, teasing the other about being scared. Being in the company of the other made them forget all about their outside problems and enjoy the moment they had together.

They sat at the top of the ferris wheel, looking over the dark sky and bright lights with the carnival music being heard from below.

"It's cold as a motherfucker up here." Royalty couldn't help but curse as she put lip gloss on her lips for some warmth and to stop it from getting dry.

Riley chuckled. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. "You good?"

She nodded and looked over at him. There wasn't much light where they were but she could still see his maroon eyes staring at her. "Yeah I'm good. I really enjoyed this date. I have never been on a date like this before." She admitted.

He raised a eyebrow at her. "Serious?" She nodded. "Damn... I mean, I've never taken a girl out on d date like this either but with you, I want to do all the fun stuff."

"Like drive in cinema, mini golf and paintballing?" She jokingly suggested.

"Hehe, yeah all that stuff if you up for it." They smiled at each other when a thought popped up in Royalty's head. Riley saw her lips twitch as if she was about to frown. "What's on your mind?" She felt stupid for thinking about it. The problem happened months ago and it wasn't a big deal. They got over it and moved on, she had no idea why the memory suddenly unlocked in her head again. "Come on, you can tell me." He encouraged when he saw the uncertainty in her face.

She sighed before spill her thoughts. "I was just thinking about how I thought I was pregnant when we first started messing around and how glad we were that it was negative but I know we both were a little, tiny bit disappointed but didn't want to admit it. We were not in an official relationship, which we're still not and it would've been a huge shock for us. Now when I come back, I hear another girl is pregnant with a baby that could be yours and it makes me think what if I was the one that was pregnant? Like, what would've happened if I found out I was pregnant, would we have stayed?"

"Damn. Nigga never really thought about all of that..." He started off, trying to gather his thoughts on how best he should reply and his opinion. It wasn't something he had really thought about after that day or something he expected her to bring up on their first date. "I mean I hope that hoe isn't having my baby or she finna give me hell."

"This is why they say be careful who you stick your dick in. Can't just be any ol' girl." Royalty playfully rolled her eyes.

"Yeah a nigga should've listened more. Anyway, I would've actually preferred if it was you having my baby than Adidas. You have more sense. I fucked up but I'll deal with the consequences, no doubt. I'm trying to do better from now on and stop being selfish. When the time comes, we will have kids, don't you worry. You already know I love the making part." Riley leaned into her and started kissing her neck, making her giggle.

"You a damn fool."

"One you love tho." He looked up just in time to see her roll her eyes. They felt the wheel turning again as they were coming to the end on the ride. "Can I kiss you?"

That request caught her off guard. He was never one to ask, he was more about actions than words. Hearing him ask for permission was cute to hear, she would've never thought he would be one to ask just to kiss her. Since she came back, they actually haven't even been intimate in ways they used to be. This would be the first time he kissed her since she arrived back in Chicago and she wasn't going to let him wait any longer.

"Yes."

That one word granted him permission and he immediately smacked his lips against her plumped lips, not even caring that his lips were going to be sticky and shiny from her lip gloss. He just missed kissing her. He reached up and held her jaw, pulling her in closer. This was driving Royalty crazy, she has never felt Riley touch or kiss her with so much feeling and emotion before. It was missing before but they now found it and it was the best thing they have ever done.

A few short seconds later they pulled their lips away but their eye stayed connected. "I missed your kisses." He confessed. "I miss everything about you, I don't want another day to go past without you being my girl... so with that being said, Royalty Empress-Kiara Williams, will you be my girlfriend?"

Royalty pouted as she heard the proposal. It was adorable to see his eyes twinkling against the carnival lights as he looked deep in her soul, he would call it gay but she didn't care. It was cute. "Yes Riley Escobar Freeman, I will be your girlfriend."

With large grins on their face, they shared a quick kiss which would've lasted longer if the ride wasn't over. They stepped out and walked away hand in hand. "You know that was kind of cliché. Kissing on the ferries wheel and all that." She joked.

Riley rolled his eyes but laughed at her statement, knowing it was true. He never planned it but it just felt like the right moment. "Shut up, you know you missed a niggas kisses." He pulled her into her arms and began kissing her while she tried to shake him off.

"Riley!" She giggled at his playfulness. "You best not buss my lip with the grillz in your mouth."

He smacked his lips as he stopped kissing her. "Not me, shit I've been in a fight with these things on and nothing."

They stood in the middle of the pathway just looking at each other. Everything around them was fast pace but all of a sudden, time stood still for them. "How about we go get some food and then go back to your place?" Royalty suggested. Just looking at him was turning her on, she was ready to seal the deal of their relationship that very night in another way they both enjoyed. As she said before, she missed him. She wanted to feel him again and he felt the same way. He could see in her eyes what she wanted, what she longed for and he was more than happy to give it to her, they just had to make it home.

"Bet, you just have to feed me when I drive."

She giggled again. She was annoyed with herself internally for how much she giggled, a habit she was sure to blame on her orange haired friend but she had no time to lecture herself, Riley was staring at her with lust and she couldn't control herself. "No problem. Let's get going."

So they did. It took longer than they wished to decided what they wanted to bring home and ended up with two bags of cotton candy, two pretzels, two bags of popcorn, two hot dogs and nachos. Their hands were full, making them glad their put their prizes in the car before getting food. The whole time they laughed and joked about random things and Riley's antics without a care in the world, finally being themselves with each other. Their relationship had officially started and they couldn't wait to explore each other in more than just a physical level. It sounded crazy to them but they were 99.9% sure they were ready to commit to a real relationship.

It wasn't going to be easy but they could do it, they had hope and that went for all the couples. They had a long road ahead of them but they saw the light. The date night was just the beginning, there was going to be many more memories to be created together and they were prepared to create them.

* * *

Riley opened his eyes as he woke from his slumber.

It was the night after his date with Royalty and he was having all types of feelings. He laid naked in his bed with another naked body sleeping away peacefully in his bed, one he definitely didn't want to kick out his house.

When they arrived back home from the carnival, it didn't take long for the two to be all over each other again but this time, it was different. They took their time with one another. It wasn't rushed like how they were used to, it was slow and sensational. Riley has never felt that way before. It was crazy to think but what they had wasn't fucking, they were making love or at least the closest thing you could get to it for two people who were not in love as of yet. Royalty had put on some soft R&B in the background which helped them so much. They music was another way to guide each other's movements to the rhythm of the songs. He didn't know he was capable of such things but he loved taking his time to make sure she reached the maximum level of her orgasim which he caused. Holding onto all her curves for the whole night was enough for him to finish quick but he didn't want that to happen. The night was special and he was pleased with the way it ended. Even if they didn't have sex, he could still go sleep knowing he treated the girl he had feelings for and decided to treat like her first name.

He was cut off by his flashbacks when he heard a soft knock on the door and something slide through his mail slot. He guessed Huey went downstairs to check the mail. He was going to leave it but when he released how dehydrated he was, he thought he should go get a bottle of water and get one for Royalty because she might need it too. They were up all night.

He stretched as he walked to his front door, naked, to see a brown envelop on the floor. He picked it up, got the two chilled bottles from the fridge and dragged his feet back to his room. He chooses to sit at the edge of the bed and open the letter there, not thinking much of it.

He ripped it open and pulled out the first bit of paper and read the tittle.

'NON-INVASIVE PATERNITY TEST'

"Oh shit." Riley mumbled under his breath, the first words he spoke since he woke up. Reading the tittle made him long forget about the water that he would need even more by the time he finished reading. The test had finally come. It was finally here but that didn't mean he was ever less nervous. As a matter of fact, he felt even worse. The day had come where he would find out if he was going to be a father or not. "Oh shit." He said louder unintentionally as he felt the weight of the letter weighing on his shoulder.

This caused Royalty to stir in her place in the bed. When she reached out to feel if Riley was still next to her and didn't feel anything, she sat up to see if she could try and find him. She saw that he was sitting by her feet, looking down at something. "Riley? What's wrong? What are you looking at?" She asked as she saw he looked frozen and his shoulders looked tense. "Riley?" She called his name again when she got no answer.

"The results are here."

It took her a second to understand what he meant but once she did, her eyes grew wide. "Oh shit." She said the same thing he said when he found out.

"Fuck man." Riley cursed. All he had to do was pull the piece of white paper up and read what it said. He didn't know why it was taking him so long. The sooner he got it over with, the sooner the situation could hopefully be put to bed.

"You want me to read it?" Royalty offered as she saw he was struggle. This was not what she wanted to wake up and see after a night of passion but it had to be done. They needed to act like adults and handle their business.

He shook his head. "No, I need to do this myself." He told her respectfully and she nodded in understanding, waiting for when he was ready. He had to take some deep breathes because he felt as if he was about to hyperventilate which is something he has never done before. It just goes to show how badly the letter was affecting him.

'Get it together nigga! You're Riley Escobar motherfucking Reezy Freeman! You can do this! This ain't shit. You've been shot and stabbed before, this is little.' He tried to hype himself up but knew he told lies. This was bigger than any bullet or blade. This was life. 'Ok, ok, let's do it... now!'

He snatched the letter out of the envelop and began to read.

Royalty sat nervously behind him, waiting for something.

A whole minute passed.

Nothing.

If he wasn't the father, he would be jumping for joy right now... wouldn't he?

"Riley..." She trailed off cautiously as she called his name. She crawled forward, letting the blanket fall from her bare chest and reach out to touch his naked back.

He slowly turned to her and the way he looked made her stomach drop. His soul looked like it was ripped right out his throat.

"It's mine... I am the father."

* * *

***Sigh* I be trying guys but I just be so tired all the time and I will be going back to education next month which is about to be crazy so my bad if the updates are even worse, I really be trying. My chapters are subconsciously getting longer too so hopefully that makes up for the long waits. Anyway, lemme know what you think about the dates AND the little , HAPPY JAMAICAN INDEPENDENCE DAY. It wasn't even intentional but oh well. Big up my people dem.**

**BoondocksFanGirl/GREENPEACE1990/RuffinNoRelation: I am glad you guys liked the training scene, I did my best and I'm glad it paid off. And who knows, maybe they might need to use their new skills on their girls night out.**

**Bulmas Ego: Thank you for your encouraging words, just know I'm still reading your work I'm just a *very* slow reader. Don't worry baby Cairo will be making an appearance soon and no Raven and the girls together in this chapter but soon. And the chick might just pop off again with her bro and all now...**

**Chel29: Girl I couldn't have ANOTHER kidnapping, well, at least not yet anyway. If there even is going to be one. Of course I see what you did there, really bad girls watched Cheetah Girls (Disney+ reminded me of that too). AND YES! Us queens do have to stick together. Thank you so much for your constant support. I appreciate it so much.**

**^^That goes for everyone that reads even if they don't review, I see you.**

**Guest: I never really thought about a spin off... maybe I should do a little short story of them starting off at the strip club? I don't know but that doesn't sound too bad. Hm, I'll think about it. And I will check out that show, I googled it and it seems interesting.**

**Until next time**

**TBG**


	37. Chapter 37: DNA Discover

**IMPORTANT AUTHORS NOTE: I have changed the name of Cookie Freeman's daughter from Gianna to Jencia and it will be explained at the end of the chapter, I don't want to spoil anything.**

**Proceed****.**

* * *

They both sat there shocked, not sure if they heard or read right.

Riley was going to be a dad?

No, that didn't sound right but it was right. It was right there in colour, not even black and white. Riley was the father to Nike's baby. The one that was going to arrive in a couple of months.

Royalty moved back onto the bed, moving away from him. She placed her back against the headboard and pulled the sheets over her chest, eyes wide as she stared off into the distance. This couldn't be happening. They just made their relationship official for the first time and this had to pop up. The problems of all problems. In the past, one of the conversations she would have with her girls would be if they would go for a man if he had a child already and her answer was yes but that applied to the baby being here before she was, not her being there before the baby. This made the situation worse. She literally had to watch another woman carry her boyfriend's child. She had to watch them go to doctor appointments together, throw a baby shower together, everything. With a woman that seemed to be stressful as hell too. Her name alone gave off red flags. This was not what Royalty wanted to wake up to after a beautiful date and passionate sex last night. She wanted to have the whole cuddle and giggle in the morning, maybe a quickie and then make each other breakfast butt ass naked. Like what couples do in the honeymoon stage. Not a DNA test that the nigga she was ready to give her all to was going to be a daddy. Who does she have to speak to so she could fight them?

Oh wait, she already knew... he was sitting at the end of the bed.

Riley read the words over and over again. '99.9% accurate. Riley Escobar Freeman is the father of the foetus.' Oh how sick he was feeling right now. His parents have always told him that his ways will land him with a std or a baby or both. He has never had a std so he guessed they got one thing right, no matter how much he wished it wasn't true. All he wanted to do was celebrate his 24th birthday but somehow during the processes he got a bitch pregnant. One named after a shoe brand at that. He really hit a new low with that one. Why did he let his dick do most of the talking? He should've listened to his heart that said not to. For once his heart was actually trying to reach out to his brain to tell him not to sleep with them females but he ignored it. He didn't care. He wanted to be irresponsible but not anymore. He needed to start acting like an adult, something his mother and brother would continue to tell him until he hopefully listened. He was listening now.

He turned to see Royalty looking shocked which was completely understandable. "Baby... you ok?" He couldn't help but to ask even though he sort of knew the answer to that question already.

She wanted to cringe at the poor choice of nickname when he tried to get her attention. "Yes Riley."

He swallowed hard, hearing no emotion in her answer. He decided to crawl up next to her but even as he did, she didn't make no move to get closer to him. That kind of hurt him. "Are you sure? You're being quiet."

"Quiet?" She turned to him and gave him a confused look. "How am I supposed to react Riley? You're going to be a dad, to a baby that isn't coming from me. What do you want me to say? You're the one that is supposed to be saying something. I'm not going to scream and holler about this shit."

"I-" He started but he didn't know what to even say to her. "I don't know." Royalty sighed before swinging her legs out of his bed covers to pick up her underwear to put it back on. "Where you going?"

"Home. You gotta find that girl and sort your shit out." She told him simply as she clipped on her bra.

"But I don't know what to do." He told her truthfully.

She turned to look at him. She could see how lost he looked and her stomach sank. He looked like he was in pain. "Find her, talk to her. Discuss what you're going to do together and sort your shit out. This is some real shit Riley, no childish ting."

He wished it was that easy but for some reason, his mind was struggling to process what was happening. He had to ask the one question he was scared to ask because he knew it wouldn't be fair to her. He really shouldn't ask. "Ca- can you come with me? When I talk to her. Please, I need you." He begged.

Royalty has never seen him beg anyone for anything, it was almost scary to see but he seemed to be allowing himself to become more vulnerable around her. "You need to do this on your own. We can break up but you and that child is forever."

"Nah I want you forever too. I told you I mean that shit. Please Royalty, I need you. I know you'll be able to help me. I'm not trying to seem completely useless and lean on your ass for everything but I just need something. You're the only person I trust. Please baby." He pleaded with her.

As she slipped on her jeans she sighed, giving in. She didn't expect to cave in so easily and quickly. 'See wah dis bwoy ah do to me.' She mentally rolled her eyes.

She disliked her generosity majority of the time. She always helped people she cared for, no matter how much they didn't deserve it sometimes. "Fine but you do this today, it can't wait."

Riley nodded, grateful. "Thank you." He walked over to her and was about to kiss her but hesitated, not knowing if she would allow him to touch her but he tried. He was happy when she didn't pull away. "I'm sorry." He whispered.

"Can't apologise for this. It is what it is." She shrugged.

Just then his phone went off, breaking the twos eye contact. He reached over and read the text from Huey. His mouth dropped open.

"What? What happened now?" She asked him worriedly. After the morning she was happening, she did not need to hear anything else that could mess up her day.

He slowly looked over at her. "You're not finna believe what more shit came through today."

* * *

Huey held onto the envelop he was waiting for ever since Raven told him about a possible new, well, old, family member. In his hand, held the DNA test. He had matched her blood to his. He couldn't ask anyone else that actually knew her because then they would start asking questions and he didn't want questions when he was looking for the very answers to what they would ask. It was a long shot and harder to match but he needed to be sure, it wasn't something that could've been left alone.

What he didn't expect was to see an envelope similar to what he had for his brother. It seemed they both were getting DNA tests today but only one was hoping to be positive.

After dropping Riley his letter, giving him a look while doing so, he walked back to his own home and walked straight into the kitchen.

"I left you for two seconds and you're already getting comfortable?" He smirked.

Jazmine turned around from the stove and grinned. "You woke me up when you left so I decided to make us breakfast."

"I wasn't even gone that long and you've already started making food... you were awake a long time ago wasn't you?" He realised.

"Nooo." She tried to deny but didn't put much effort in doing so. He raised an eyebrow at her failed attempt to lie. "Ok fine, yeah I was but I didn't want to come out of your comfy arms. You know you're good at cuddling, like really good, scary good. Someone's had practice." She teased.

Huey rolled his eyes and stepped up to Jazmine. She moved so she wasn't leaning on the stove just as he stepped closer to her. Her back hit the counter top, stopping her from moving away. Jazmine's breath caught in her throat as she stared into his deep maroon eyes, having no clue what his next move was going to be. He put his hand delicately under her chin and slowly lifted it higher, making her neck straight but without breaking eye contact. "I don't practice. That was specifically for you." He told her. It wasn't a completely lie. Raven was his only serious relationship as mentioned many times before which meant she got to see more sides to him than any female could ever see. They were young so cuddling then and cuddling now was different. Back then it was cute, they were teenagers, now he was a grown adult. It meant more. In his adult life he has never held a girl in his arms the way he did last night with Jazmine. He couldn't deny that it felt... nice. He was definitely looking forward to more nights with her.

"You just sexy for no reason huh?" She let slip from her lips, making her immediately go red in the face. "Did I really just say that out loud?"

He smirked at her face changing colour. "Yes, yes you did." He reached down and gave her a soft peck on her awaiting lips.

As he pulled away, Jazmine gave him a bashful smile. "I- I should speak my mind more often."

"I like forwardness."

"And I like you." She said, without skipping a beat.

Just as he said, he liked forwardness and she showed just that. It was attractive as hell to him. He pulled her in close and gave her a much deserving kiss when she suddenly broke away.

"Wait, my eggs!" She spun out of his arms and checked on the food she was making as much as she didn't want to leave his embrace.

Huey stepped back and allowed Jazmine space to finish cooking. He sat onto of his counter top and picked up the envelop he had yet to open. He sighed, which caught Jazmine's attention. "What's that?" She asked, referring to the item in his hands.

He forgot she didn't know what was happening so he gave her a quick rundown on everything that was happening behind the scene. He thought it would be weird to be discussing his business with an outsider but this outsider just so happened to be his new girlfriend. His girlfriend that had already been dragged through the mud because of his lifestyle but still stuck by his side and was now here with him in the kitchen, cooking them breakfast. If anyone heard him talking to her about this, they will know she was special or that he was crazy, he didn't do this with just anyone. "This is the DNA test I have been waiting for to clear up the theories we have."

Jazmine stared at him with wide eyes as she dished out their food. "Wow, so you really might have a family member in with your enemy?"

He slightly nodded as he grabbed their plates while she grabbed their drinks and made their way over to the stools in the kitchen to sit and eat. "Yeah... I don't want to bring up such a painful memory but do you remember ever seeing someone with similar traits as my family and I?" He questioned cautiously, not wanting to bring up past trauma but he just had to ask.

Jazmine stopped eating and before she gave permission, her mind trailed off and pulled up the dark memories of that night. Her thoughts and flashbacks were going 100 miles per second, digging up all the stress and pain she experienced. Getting grabbed outside the club, waking up in the dark room, get punched around... Vladimir. A shiver ran down her spine as she remembered his name. A name she never wanted to mutter again. "I-" She started but paused.

Huey saw the hesitation in her voice. "Forget it, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought this up." He quickly dismissed but she shook her head.

"It's fine. You needed to ask but to answer your question, I didn't. No one that looked like you were around, I'm pretty sure I would've let you know too."

"You're right, I'm sorry." He held onto one of her cheeks to pull her closer so he could kiss her other cheek.

Jazmine couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. "Someone is very affection this morning."

It was true. He didn't even notice it until she mentioned it, he just didn't seem to help himself when he was around her. "Only for you." He sent her a wink, making her blush. "Second time today and it's not even 12pm? Wow, I'm on a roll."

"Ugh shut up." She playfully pushed him, trying her best to cover her red cheeks. "Just open the damn envelope."

As much as he wanted to tease her a bit more, he decided to do as she said. He picked up the awaiting envelope and ripped it open. Jazmine sat quietly next to him, eating her food and watching him. He pulled out the white sheet and quickly scanned over it. "Oh shit." Was the first thing that slipped out his mouth. He immediately pulled out his phone to text his family, they weren't going to believe this shit.

Curiosity got the best of Jazmine so she reached over to read over the letter herself.

'13% chance of relation. Possible distant aunt.'

"You were right... this is your dad's cousin!" She said excitedly until she remembered something. "But, why is she with them?" She didn't even want to say their names.

Huey slowly shook his head, feeling shell shocked. "I have no clue but I need to talk to my family to sort this shit out. I need to know why they kept this secret and what happened to Jencia and Carmen Freeman because obviously one of them is still alive. Who knows, they both might still be alive."

"Wow. That shit is crazy as fuck. I hope you find out what you need to know."

"I hope so too. Freeman's are stubborn, getting information out of them might be a little difficult."

"Well I know you and you can get information out of anyone." She said to him.

He shrugged. "True."

After that the two completely forgot about the letter on the table and went off in their own world for the next two hours before they would leave to do what they needed to do. They were already becoming so comfortable with each other that everything was starting to feel natural. Jazmine being around him all the time, waking up next to him. It felt good but they knew they didn't want to rush what they had or it could fall apart just as quickly and that's the last thing they wanted.

* * *

All four couples broke off and went to do what they needed to do. Hiro and Caesar went to handle business, the Freeman's went to handle family business while the girls decided to plan their business.

They sat at their dinner table with papers spread out everywhere with stationary on top. The papers were covered in writing and numbers, anyone on the outside would think it was nonsense.

"I can't believe we're actually doing this." Jazmine grinned excitedly.

"Right? I'm going to have my own business soon." Cindy smirked.

Cindy decided it was time to start her business on the gym she wanted to buy and renovate. It was still sitting empty where it was abandoned. She wanted it before someone else buys it and destroys it, making it something unnecessary to the neighbourhood. They were going over business plans, lay outs and payments. They were going to view the place next week in person since they haven't seen how bad the damage was now from it being neglected.

"The place has a lot of potential... I can't wait to go inside so I can start planning how it is going to look." Ming said as she looked over the magazines in front of her.

Royalty gave her a deep straight face. "You're already doing that. You have already started about 4 different colour schemes."

Ming looked up at her friend. "Well excuse me for trying to be prepared. I want Cindy to have options because once we start with the colour everything else will come together."

Royalty held her hands up in defence. "Mi sorry."

"Well I appreciate all the help I can get. I have no clue how my parents wanted me to run a prestige company when I need help just to start a little business." Cindy sighed as she looked over all the numbers. At this point, they were all looking jumbled up. "I can't believe I set my deadline to next summer. It's so close!"

"Well that's what friends are for." Jazmine smiled. "We help each other. You're not going to do this all on your own."

"I know but how am I going to handle all of..." A thought popped up in Cindy's head, something she should've thought about a long time ago. "I'm dumb as fuck." She laughed to herself while everyone else just looked confused. She turned to Jazmine. "Jazzy. You want to open a dance studio right?" Jazmine nodded. "Why don't we become business partners? That way we can build an extension of the gym for your studio. It would be separate but together if you get what I mean. If anyone from your studio wants to sign up for a membership at my gym, they get discount and vice versa. That way we have regular customers and both get paid. I mean it's a suggestion, it doesn't have to be specifically that but you get what I am trying to put across." Cindy propositioned.

Jazmine thought about it. "That is actually a good idea. It could work. The two are mutually exclusive. People that dance work out too. That will attract more people our way, especially after school kids." She gasped. "That way parents can drop their kids off for dance or basketball club."

"Exactly! So, do we have a deal?"

Jazmine shook her hand with enthusiasm. "Deal. Business partner. Wait, we will have to different names though."

Cindy shrugged. "Fine by me."

"Ok. We will focus on your gym first because we will be building a studio from scratch basically. It will take some time so that might not be finished until the following new year." Jazmine announced. She had flipped to the page of her plans in her note book for her studio and started going over it.

"Ahh now I need to get my shit together." Royalty pouted.

"Don't stress. Theres no rush. You're helping us for now which is more than what we can ask for."

Ming nodded. "Yeah, you don't have to decide right away because we've started planning. You still have time."

Royalty sighed and rubbed her forehead. "I think I'm going to do hair. Open a hairdresser and barbershop in one. Hairdresser first though."

"Well at least you can practice on your man." Cindy teased, making her remembered what happened this morning.

"Oh right, I haven't even told you guys."

"Ohh tea. Let's order food and some wine and we can talk about our little dates." Jazmine suggested without missing a beat. They all needed a break after staring at papers for so long which was why she was quick to jump at the opportunity to stop for a moment.

They all agreed and did just that. It wasn't long before the papers were forgotten on the dinner table and they all sat in the living room eating pizza and drinking wine, ready to hear the little gossip.

"I'll go first since Jazmine already had an idea of my date. Sneaky bitch." Ming rolled her eyes at Jazmine's dramatic gasp. "My baby Hiro took me to a kickball game out of town and it just so happened to be the senior team to the junior team I used to play for."

"Wow. Did you see anyone you know?"

She nodded. "Yeah a couple. Hiro got us VIP tickets which meant we was right up at the front when my old team mate, Amy, saw me. She came over and then got me to go on the field just to have one kick. The announcer recognised me and said my whole business in front of everyone." She rolled her eyes. Ming pulled out her phone and went to search her name to see if a video came up from last night and there was. She was even more certain her parents were about to see it very soon if they haven't already. She showed her friends who looked in shock.

"Wow. Half a milli views already. Ok Ming I see you. Someone might be getting back into the game I see." Cindy teased.

"Nah not me. That's done. My friend said the same thing but I like what I'm about to do now."

"Thats good but what did Hiro say?" Jazmine asked.

"He was just shocked but very impressed. Even when I was shouting in Mandarin, he still let me do my thing. He didn't care that he didn't understand, he even said he was going to learn which means I'm going to learn Japanese for him." She told them.

This made Jazmine pout. "Aww that's so sweet."

"I know right! Ok, enough about me. Cynthia, your turn to share." Ming winked as she took a sip of her wine.

Cindy rolled her eyes at her full name, a reaction she couldn't help. "Well he took me ice skating which was hilarious. He couldn't skate for shit. I had to show him a bit. He could barely stand on the ice let alone move. He refused to drop, like he was adamant to not drop. It was all going good until this older white couple decided to voice their unwanted opinion say we were 'disgusting'. That put us in a bad mood and we kind of talked about how our relationship was going to be tested and shit. By the end of it, we were both over the ice skating and went on a cocktail date instead."

"Wow, I'm sorry that happened to you." Jazmine said.

"Girl fuck them bitches. I don't give a fuck." Cindy told her truthfully. "It's just white people getting their nose stuck up someone else's ass they have no place of being."

"I mean that's one way to put it." Royalty mumbled against her glass before taking a sip.

"He brought out your inner Elsa again didn't he?" Ming joked, which caused Cindy to roll her eyes at the name.

"He wouldn't stop calling me that throughout the whole date. I don't even like Frozen! I even accidently referenced the movie and he wouldn't stop bringing it up. But yeah that was mine. Nothing else. Jazmine, wanna share next since you got all dressed up?" Cindy swiftly moved on, seeing no need to go into that subject.

A smile broke out on her face. "Yes!" She looked up at the celling dramatically as she got flashbacks. "He took me to this art gallery and it was amazing! The art was amazing and we talked about each piece and our thoughts of it while sipping champagne. We even saw a piece of Riley's work in there. You should check it out, it's really good." Jazmine directed the last part to Royalty who looked shocked. She didn't expect Riley to have work in an art gallery. "While I was looking at one, the owner came up and it just so happened to be her painting. She was telling me a bit about herself. She even dated Hiro a few years ago." Ming raised an eyebrow, wondering if she had competition and Jazmine saw this. "Girl don't worry, no competition. She is married with a child and another on the way anyway. Then Huey brought me the very painting right there and then, which reminds me that it is still at his house. Damn."

"You're acting like your ass isn't going to find your way back soon." Royalty smirked.

"Shh." Jazmine dismissed playfully. "Anyway, he organised a roof top dinner and we talked. It was honestly the most romantic thing I have experienced in so long." She said blissfully until she remembered something that also happened during the dinner. "Oh, then Jayden text me... I have to sort that baggage out asap."

"I bet he's going to cry." Cindy commented, making Royalty and Ming burst out in laughter.

"I bet he's going to go on his knees and beg for her back." Ming added.

"I bet he's going to do something stupid and Huey is going to fuck him up." When Royalty said that, everyone looked at her with different expressions. "What? That's the type of shit he would do. Riley would do the exact same. Maybe Jayden took too many hits in high school and college playing football but he seems the type of guy to try and act, uh, all macho and shit. You have to be careful Jaz, he looks like he can switch any moment. Look how many years we've been away from each other, you don't know if he changed during college." Royalty told her surprisingly calmly.

Jazmine didn't even think about it. Since he laid his eyes on her in Empire, he seemed very... possessive. Like he didn't want to let her go. She understood it in a romantic sense but his seemed to be slowly tip toeing into the creepy side. As Royalty said, she hasn't seen him in years and she's barely hung out with him when they were sleeping together. Then when he surprised her with a dinner with her parents when she wasn't ready. She had to tread lightly. "You're right. I'll definitely look out for signs of crazy."

"As you should."

"Now tell us about your date." Jazmine flipped.

Royalty sighed but a ghost smile formed on her lip as she thought about the date. "Whew, the date! Well, where to start? He took us to what you American's call carnival."

"You're still won't accept that?" Cindy laughed, having heard the girls dislike for the use of the word carnival in the states.

"Yup!" She answered. "So, not even long before we arrived, a guy questioned Riley's masculinity on a shooting game and you know how niggas are. They made a bet and Riley won with flying colours, winning prizes for your girl. After that we went game to game, winning them... my winnings are at his house, damn." Royalty said more to herself. "Then we went on the rides. We got on the Ferris wheel and talked, kissed and he officially asked me to be his girl, it was... sweet. Like, really sweet. He can be a little soft around me." Her smile dropped when she remembered this morning and what she just learned. "But then! The shit that happened. This nigga is going to have a bloodclaut baby with di girl he did fuck." She informed them, the native Jamaican in her coming out.

Jazmine gasped. "No?"

"Bitch yes!" She groaned. "I still can't believe this shit."

"You really about to be a step mother like we said you would be? I hope you're not evil." Cindy teased.

Royalty's scowl only deepened. "You hoes jinxed me."

Ming had to hold back her laugh to talk. "Sis, we didn't jinx shit. This shit happens."

"Yeah, to me, not you guys. I don't see any of you with step kids on the way." She rolled her eyes. "I finally take a nigga serious after years and this the fuckery I receive." She kissed her teeth. "We're going to talk to her today."

"'We?'" They all said at once.

"Yes we. I'm going with him to talk to her. This shit should be good."

"Maybe I should come so I can see if y'all fight. I'll record it. I would say put it on Worldstar but they ain't shit now." Cindy suggested.

Royalty wanted to throw the cushion at the blonde's head but didn't feel like having to clean the wine stain out of the pillow. "Shut the fuck up. I can't even fight her, she's pregnant bitch."

"You fight anyone."

"So do you!" Royalty called her out. "And I don't fight children, old people or pregnant women. Unless they're asking for it, I might give them a forehead flick or something."

"If you try this bitch, you try these hands." Cindy shrugged as she lifted her fists.

Jazmine laughed and grabbed another slice of pizza. "Again, I can't stand you hoes." It was as if that was their catchphrase the amount of times they would say it to each other.

"We can't stand you either hoe." Ming said to her back.

They looked at each other in silence for a second before bursting out in laughter until Jazmine gasped, causing them to stop laughing.

"Oh shit." Jazmine remembered. "Huey's birthday is next week, what am I going to do? It's the first birthday together so it has to be extra special."

"But knowing him, he won't want anything." Cindy pointed out.

"I know, he says it's just a reminder that he's a year closer to death but everyone deserves to celebrate their birthday. You know how much I love birthdays and holidays." Jazmine pouted.

Ming looked over at Cindy. "You should've known our girl was going to do something for Mr Straight face anyway. Which reminds me, Cindy's birthday is coming up too."

"So is Caesars." Cindy told them.

Royalty snorted. "Your parents were getting busy on Valentine's man."

"Anyyywaaay, back to my problem." Jazmine pulled their attention back to her. "What am I going to do?!"

"Slap on some lingerie and call it a day. He'll know what to do." Royalty shrugged and took another bite out her pizza.

Jazmine squinted her eyes at the girl. "That ain't shit! That's basic."

"Throw some rose petals on that bitch."

"Ugh, you're so useless."

"No... maybe she's onto something." Ming thought about it for a second. "Cindy you better listen up too so you have something for Caesar." The blonde rolled her eyes but listened anyway. She didn't even think about their birthday. "Use his place to set something up all cute and get sexy. Simple. Men don't expect much, especially someone like Huey. You can get away with that shit."

She sighed. "I know...but I wanted to do something a little extra."

"You'll think of something." Royalty reassured her with her mouth full of pizza. "Oh yeah, Riley's little cousins are having a birthday party next week and Dante invited us. He said its superhero themed and he wants us to dress up. He said we don't have to but we can and if we are, we have to force our boyfriends to dress up also."

"That sounds so fun! I love dressing up. Oh my gosh, who are we going to be?" Jazmine excitement began to grow by the second.

"It's a good thing we actually watch superhero stuff then." Ming snorted. "Ugh, there's so much. Marvel... DC... so much to choose from."

"All I know is, I hope no one wears the same thing as me." Cindy shrugged and picked up another slice.

Royalty couldn't help but to laugh. "Girl, there is enough blonde, white superheroes. Your ass will be fine."

"...You right."

She smirked. "That's on privilege."

They went on to talk about what outfits they should get themselves and their boyfriends, excited to be dressing up. All the drama they had were being left for a few hours but they knew it was just going to start brewing again but for now it was at the back of their minds.

* * *

"This is about to be so interesting." Jaliyah mumbled from the passenger seat in Riley's car.

After informing the cousins about the news, Huey called a family meeting, getting everyone together to discuss their discovery. He could tell from the replies he had received, everyone was now tense.

'That ain't the only thing interesting going to be said.' Riley thought in annoyance as he thought about his own DNA results. He needed to tell them since they were all waiting on the test too. It didn't help that he was stressing the fuck out. He just got Royalty and he already fucked up, his irresponsible ass got a woman pregnant now he had to step up and he knew it was going to hurt her in the process. She was going to watch everything. He wished things didn't have to happen this way.

"I know. Todo esto es una locura." Monquie spoke from the backseat, applying more makeup to her face.

"Yeah, crazy..." Jaliyah trailed off as she watched her younger cousin through the rear-view mirror, putting on an unnecessary amount of makeup on, which was strange. "Hey Mon, how's you and your girlfriend?" She asked curiously.

Riley quietly snickered. "I forgot your ass was half gay."

Monique rolled her eyes at Riley. She has been hearing him say that ever since she came out as bisexual 4 years ago. Some people may not like hearing that but to her, she found it funny. Plus, it was Riley, he would say it all the time if wanted to. "Yeah we're cool."

"You sure?"

She slowly looked up and caught eye contact with her cousin. Did she know?

Before Monquie could even try to come up with an answer, Riley pulled up to his parents' house, which she was grateful for. With lightning speed, she packed up her makeup and jumped out the car.

"Damn Flash, slow down." Riley told her as he got out the car too.

Two more cars pulled up next to his and the cousins all walked towards the door together. They knocked and Mackenzie was there with a smile on her face to greet everyone.

"Hey babies! I feel like I haven't seen you all in one place in forever." She hugged and kissed everyone as she let them in.

They walked into the living room where aunt Cookie, their grandfather and fathers all sat, clueless to why they were there.

"About time your ass came over. Calling me early for me to come out my house for stupid reasons I bet." Grandad complained for where he was sitting. "Who fucked up now?"

"Trust me, this isn't stupid." Huey told him.

"Well damn, let us get this over and done with. I got Baby Boy to catch on BET."

"Grandad, they show it all the time. It will legitimately come on an hour later." Huey rolled his eyes.

"So?! A nigga still wants to watch my movie. Shittt and then after that Friday is coming on. You know I love them films. You know, the old nigga reminds me of me. We both handsome and end up being surrounded by dumb asses."

Cookie hit her brother in the shoulder. "Robert hush up. You know you look nothing like him." She turned to her nieces and nephews. "So how you been babies?"

That was the second time they have been called babies since they have arrived. It was a bit weird. "You know... just been working and school." Jaliyah answered, taking another look at Monique.

"Well that's good, that's good."

"Yup, very proud of my baby going through college." Mairo smiled at the youngest in the room.

"Thanks pops." She smiled at him.

Chrisitan looked at his youngest son and saw he looked very fidgety in his spot. He looked troubled. "Riley. What's bothering you?" He questioned.

'Damn, I couldn't even hold on until after. I can never get shit past these niggas.' Riley cursed himself.

"Your father is right, what is it? What did you do now?" Mackenzie crossed her arms, waiting for an answer now too. She knew her son all too well.

Riley felt all eyes on him and began to sweat. He did not want to say it like this but it was too late. He was cornered. "Mann this some bullshit. The baby is mine ok! The test came today, that hoe is having my baby, shit." He confessed. He felt as if this should've made his shoulders lighter but it didn't. The load just felt more painful.

"You can't call her a hoe no more, that's the mother of your child now." Mackenzie sighed and rubbed her forehead. She wished for a negative result like everyone else but there was nothing they could do about it now. They just had to adapt now. "And don't be dropping that child off to us all the time. I was ready to kick the shit out of Huey when he dropped that baby with us. Good thing Raven stepped in and is raising that baby all on her own. Bless her kind heart."

Huey rolled his eyes at his name being mentioned for what he felt was irrelevant to the subject.

"Have you talked to her?" Dante asked, the first he was hearing this information.

Riley shook his head. "No. Royalty going to come with me to talk to her."

A wave of disapproving noises went around the room after he said that.

"Nigga is she even your girl for you to be dragging her into your shit?" Dominic asked his nephew.

He knotted his eyebrows together, irritated. "As of last night she is."

"Well I hope she knows that you're going to step up and be a father and raise that child." Mackenzie went onto lecture him.

"Yeah yeah I know. Look, that's not even why we hear for so let's hop off my di-" He paused and looked at the two older women who gave him a look. "Never mind, imma shut up."

"Uhmm. That's the right call. Yup."

The room fell silent for a few seconds, the cousins looking at each other, wondering who was going to speak up first.

Anthony, being the oldest of them, decided he would get the conversation rolling. After that, Huey could take over on what he knew. "So when was you going to tell us that there is more Freeman's."

The parents looked at each other.

"But there is always more of us." Mario answered confused.

"We mean from uncle Ryan and aunt Cookie." Demetrius added, already knowing they were trying to play dumb.

"What are you talking about? Ryan never had children and Cookie was unable to complete a pregnancy and even when she did the baby sadly passed." Christian told them, wondering why they were bringing this topic up as they never have before. It was one of those family things people accepted and kept it moving. No one spoke on it again.

"There's no point in lying. I had Jaliyah check all your medical files." Huey told them and he saw the shock wave around the room.

"Boy who the hell told you to do that?! Girl you can get into trouble for that!"

Jaliyah sighed at her grandfather statement, knowing it was true but it was something she needed to find out. She was curious too. "I know but this is something we all want to know. Something we all need to know."

"What for?" Cookie spoke up for the first time since the topic was brought up. Huey could see the distant look in her face and knew he was onto something.

"It would make more sense if you tell us the story about Jenica and Carmen Freeman first." He told anyone who wanted to start. Once he said their names, everyone who seemed to know, understood that they couldn't hide the secret any longer. It was time to tell the decades old secret.

"I guess you guys already know some of it..." Cookie started. The cousins all got comfortable, wanting to hear everything that was about to be said. "It was true that I had 4 miscarriages but the still born was a lie. The baby survived." A faint smiled formed on Cookie's lips as her mind went back to a memory she blocked out for years. "Jenica Freeman-Raymond... a beautiful baby girl. I was so scared to let her out my arms. Just so precious and small, especially compared to Chris who was already 4 months older than her. We named her Jenica because it means "God is gracious" which we believed for blessing me to carry a baby to term and survive. Those 10 years John and I spent with our daughters were the best 10 years of our lives. She was smart, courageous, caring but also a little trouble maker with anything she could get her hands on." The older adults in the room chuckled as they remembered the memories Cookie was speaking of. "When Christian and Jenica were 5, our brother Ryan got a random girl pregnant. One he was sleeping around with, kind of reminds me of someone too." Everyone slowly turned to Riley who already knew everyone was going to look his way.

"Yeah yeah I get it, I fucked up. Continue." He quickly dismissed.

"Anyway, that was when Carmen was born. Robert, Ryan and I all had our own children now but Robert still had us beat by having another child the year after Carmen's birth. After that, everything was fairly normal. Robert had the boys, I had my daughter and Ryan had his. We were all extremely protective over them girls. They had protection everywhere they went. We didn't want anyone to harm them like any family would be like. I had been trying for too many years to have her be taken away from me but that's exactly what happened." She let out a shaky breath, her years of grief slowly starting to overtake her body once again. Mackenzie held her hand for comfort even though she knew anything she did was not going to help with the pain Cookie was feeling. "But them girls were not weak girls. Carmen had a fire in her that people were shocked to see in a little 5-year-old but then they remembered her father and understood exactly where she got it from. She was super-fast too. Despite the five-year age gap between Jenica and Carmen, they were very close which made us proud to see. Actually, all five of them were close like how you kids are close." Cookie pointed out.

Christian nodded. "Jenica was actually my best friend. I loved my cousin so much." At the end, his voice cracked as much as he tried to stop it from happening. Just like Cookie, the memories he stored away was coming back and his wife was right there to comfort him.

"Carmen was our best friend too. She was crazy but I wouldn't exchange her for anyone else." Dominic smirked.

"It was nice to have some nieces. All I could do was produce knuckle headed boys." Grandad mumbled not so quietly as he twirled his walking stick in his hand. It had taken him awhile to accept it but he was slowly getting used to it by now. It was becoming an extension of his arm.

"This man is almost never nice to us." Mario shook his head as his father.

"I gave you life didn't I? Oh yeah, thought as much."

"Anyway." Cookie interrupted them before they could go off on a whole different discussion. "They both grew up like any other child. Well, kind of. Ryan was always running his gang which they all witnessed but Robert and I did our best to keep them away as they were too young to get involved. To provide them with some type of normal childhood. Then one night... things just flipped upside down and was never the same." Cookie took a deep breath as she felt her heart breaking as if it was the first time she spoke of this night but the wound still felt fresh. "Ryan was having some problem with the Russians, it also seems like history is about to repeat itself, I hope it doesn't. The kids were at my house having a sleep over while the men went out. It was a normal Saturday night. All the children were sleeping in Jenica's room while I was downstairs drinking a glass of water when I heard glass shattering, followed by screaming. I ran as quick as I could up to the room where I found 3 men in the room, fighting off the boys who were trying to get their cousins back. They grabbed Jenica and Carmen. It was as if they specifically wanted the girls and that was all. I tried to fight them off too put ended up getting shot in the foot."

A short gasp went around the room as they continued to listen to Cookie retelling the past. "Oh no, that's horrible."

Cookie slightly smiled at Monique even though there was no happiness behind it. "That was the least amount of pain I have ever felt in my life sweetheart, its ok." Hearing her say that made the younger generation feel uncomfortable. Being shot was one of the most painful physical pain you could go through so they automatically knew that compared to her mental and emotional pain, getting shot in the foot was nothing. That was scary to think about. "John, Ryan and Robert just so happened to pull up to the house at the very moment the men had escaped while I laid on the floor with blood spilling everywhere with the boys trying to help me. Our girls. Th-" Cookie had to stop speaking as she began to sob. She couldn't stop. The night was now replaying over and over again in her head and it was causing her so much pain.

"Uncle Ryan went after them immediately while uncle John and dad came to look for us." Christian continued for his aunt. He knew she wasn't going to be able to finish telling the story and he didn't blame her. He was the oldest and remembered seeing and hearing everything. He also lost his best friend so that tore him apart too. "Uncle Ryan chased down the men none stop and his people were chasing the Russian's down with him. That had taken a route that some of the Panthers were hanging out so once they saw their boss racing after another car, they hopped in their car and started to follow. Uncle Ryan said he wanted to crash or shoot up the car so badly but the thought of hitting his daughter or niece would be something he could never live with. It was hard to even see exactly where they were in the car because so much was going on was what he told us. The chase lasted about 10 minutes and got onto the freeway when the Russian's lost control. The car hit the barrier and went flying... it rolled down a hill into a forest and almost instantly caught fire." Christian had to pause himself and let everything settle. The room was still, everyone hanging onto the words being spoken, it being worse than they expected. Huey felt guilty for coming so head strong in the beginning. He should've been more sensitive to the matter because he had a sickening felling it was just going to get worse. They still haven't reached the part where they actually find out what happened to the girls.

Dominic decided to take over from his brother. "Everyone jumped out their car but it was too late. The damage to the car was irreversible and dangerous to even get close to. There was no saving whoever was in there. The fire had claimed whatever life was inside. Uncle Ryan tried to run towards the car despite seeing the fire but was pulled back just in time when the car exploded. He didn't even have time to properly react to the idea of his daughter and niece being in the fire when he was called over to somewhere else. Confused, he followed his name being called. That's when... that's when he found Jenica." Cookie cry got louder as she heard her daughter's name being said, already knowing what was coming next. "She was found 15 feet away from the car. As the car rolled down the hill, she had flown out the window and hit her head. We were told she died instantly. She never suffered but we sadly couldn't do anything to save her."

"Uncle Ryan waited for us to arrive. Aunt Cookie refused to go to the hospital until she found out what happened to her daughter so I just remember blood being everywhere. When we arrived, he just looked lost. He was staring at the flames in the car just silent. He may not have planned to have a child but he loved Carmen more than anything. He always said she made him a better man. She taught him what it meant to truly be a man. Now she was gone. He hated that he left her that night, feeling as if it was his fault. His fault that he had beef, his fault that he wasn't around his daughter on the weekend he had her, his fault that he didn't stop them from crashing, his fault that two daughters were lost that night. That was the first time I have ever heard pain being verbalised listening to aunt Cookie's cries. It was scary, especially for a four-year-old like me." Mario added.

"I can't believe all this happened. How did things change after?" Anthony asked the parents in the room who were all feeling emotional.

"Everything changed." Robert spoke up for the first time in forever as he looked over at his grandchildren. "Cookie was heartbroken all over again. Ryan was pissed at the world for the longest time but before he could get revenge on the Russian's, they disappeared. He carried hate in his heart for the longest time, it was the only thing big enough to fill what once held Carmen, even Jenica. Jenica was 10, Carmen was 5. Two beautiful nieces I had. We sadly couldn't recover anything from the fire so we decided to just have a headstone where Jenica was buried, to be for Carmen as well. They are resting together. From then, no one has spoken about the two in years. Carmen's mother moved across town away from us so that was that. Now, why all of a sudden you knuckleheaded niggas are going snooping through shit you have no business in?" Robert inquired once he finished the story.

Huey cleared his throat. It was a lot to take in but he had to focus because this was something everyone had to hear and after what was just said, everything was clicking in place. It was bigger than they thought. "I know this is going to sound insensitive but some things need to be cleared up. So, you said Jenica was 10 when she died and Carmen was 5 and after the crash the only body that was recovered was Jenica."

"Yes that is correct. My poor baby..." Cookie trailed off, holding her hands to her chest for some type of comfort.

"So that means it is possible that Carmen could have possible survived the accident."

The older people in the room all had different levels of confused on their face. "What makes you say that Huey?" His father questioned him, wanting to know why his kids did digging in their past and forced them to relive a night they all wanted to forget.

"I- well, we, think we found Carmen."

Silence. That was the reply he got. His parents looked at him as if he was crazy because it sounded crazy.

"Huey, honey, from what I heard, no one could've survived that fire." Mackenzie told him.

Huey had to hold himself from rolling his eyes at the patronising tone as if he sounded crazy. He did, he just didn't like being talked to like that but it was from his mother so he should've expected it. "When we were out on one of our missions, Raven had a fight with one of the Russian's but when the woman removed her mask, Raven froze because she saw the similarities between her and us. She ran before we could talk to her. Raven busted her lip so we took the mask that had the blood on it and ran the DNA with my own and there's a match. That woman is Carmen. It must be her."

Cookie gasped. "Sweet baby Carmen? It couldn't be. How?!"

"Whatever Russian had survived must've taken her with them before the fire, before uncle Ryan could see them leaving. If the fire didn't happen, you all would've been looking for her as there was a chance, she was still alive. The fire just made everything seem like a dead end. It burnt any possible evidence and I know no one would be bothered looking too into recovering ashes." Huey explained to them. It sounded crazy but possible. Since he found out the truth, it has been running in his mind ever since. He was sure the woman was the missing Freeman now.

"So what you going to do?" Christian inquired, generally curious on what plan his son could come up with since this all didn't even sound real.

"We plan to go get her. Weather it is willingly or by force, we will see."

"How sure are you that this is my baby cousin?" Dominic crossed his arms as he looked at the boys.

"Shiitt 'bout 13% or whatever it said on the paper." Riley told them.

Dante took a deep breath. "We know this was hard to talk about but we wouldn't have brought it up if we didn't need to. Raven had a hunch and it was right. This way, it gives everyone the closure they may have needed."

"However, you might not even need it once we get Carmen back." His twin finished off.

"Wait, quick question." Jaliyah brought up something that they had forgotten to mention earlier. "When I was looking through their files, I saw one of them had surgery when they were a new born but there were no clue dates or anything. Does any of them have a scar on their lower abdomen?"

Cookie nodded. "Carmen. She was only a couple of days old when she had the surgery and the scar was always there... if it is her, my brother is not even here to see his sweet baby Carmen again." She sighed sadly.

"Well we could tell Carmen's mother if she's still around. I'm sure she would like to know if her daughter is alive."

The whole room stood paused. "Uh uh." The older adults all said at once.

"Why?" The young adults questioned.

"Because that woman hates our guts." Grandad went on to explain. "Since it was Ryan's shit that got her daughter taken away from her, that woman tried to burn our damn house down but Cookie beat her ass."

"Damn, is that you aunt Cookie?" Riley almost laughed.

"You know I'm not one for violence but I protect my own."

"That's what's up."

Mackenzie walked back into the room after disappearing half way through the conversation to go and retrieve a few things she knew hasn't been touched in years. "I had a feeling you guys might want to see some of their old pictures." She reached into the box and started to take out pictures and handed it around the room, everyone looking at them for the first time or as if it was the first time.

"Aww you guys look so cute." Monique as she looked at the picture of her father and uncles.

"I was the cutest of course." Mario smirked but his brothers disagreed.

Huey looked down at the picture in his hand. It was a picture of his father, uncles and two girls that looked to be in the same age bracket as them. They all had big grins on their faces, with not a care in the world. Just innocent.

"I was 7 in that picture. It was summer and we went to Miami for the first time. Jenica is the one with her hair in beads and Carmen is the one with two puffs." Christian pointed for his son to see the aunts he should've known.

"The Freeman genes just be strong for no reason huh." Demetrius joked as he looked over at the pictures.

"You got that right!" Grandad agreed.

"What's the most recent picture of Carmen and Jenica?" Huey asked his father.

Christian reached in the box and began looking around until he found the picture he was looking for. "This one. It was from the night they were taken. The very last picture was shared together."

Huey took the picture in his hands and instantly felt a shiver run down his spine. It was as if looking at the pictures of the girls brought a ghost like feeling around him, it was hard to explain but it was there. He pulled out his phone and sent a quick picture to Raven as she was the one that lead them on their journey of uncovering the unknown Freeman's. It didn't take long for him to get a reply.

_Raven: Aww they were so cute! But the woman definitely looked like one of them girls, maybe more of the younger girl._

_Huey: Thanks._

_Raven: Welcome, make sure you tell me everything that happened. I wanna know._

He put his phone away after reading the last text, knowing he didn't even need to reply but now he had to leave. As much as Huey hated to break up this family moment, he needed to prepare for getting the woman that has been missing from the family. "Thank you for everything but I need to go now. The faster I plan to get the one who is most likely Carmen, the faster you will be able to see her again." He spoke to the room as he stood along with his brother and the twins.

"I'm going to stay here a while." Anthony told his cousins, Jaliyah and Monique nodding in agreement. They wanted to find out more about Jenica and Carmen Freeman as they were probably so many stories their fathers held back just because their cousins were missing from their lives now.

"Ok. We'll see you guys later."

Just before the boys left the house, grandad called them back.

"Boys! Don't y'all go and trouble poor Carmen's mother! Remember she hates anyone with the name Freeman. Try and mess our shit up back then. She doesn't need to be given false hope with your ass running around her places. She crazy too!"

They paused and all shared a look. "We won't."

* * *

"But we did."

The four men stood outside the yellow house that was on the other side of town. The home that held Carmen's mother. It wasn't hard to track her down, fairly easier than they thought. They had also found out that she has a son older than Carmen who is in prison, currently on his 8th year on his 13 years sentence for armed robbery and another son younger than Carmen who was in New York. She was alone. No husband, no children. Just her.

"You think she might shoot us?" Dante asked as they walked up to the house.

"Nigga why the fuck you put that in my head? Now I gotta keep my hand on my strap." Riley went to reach for his waistband but Huey stopped him.

"Don't. We don't need no bloodshed or threats to be going on."

Demetrius couldn't help but chuckle. "The way grandad and aunt Cookie was talking about her, I think we're more in danger from her."

Huey shook his head but couldn't help but let out a slight sigh pass his lips. "Let's just get this done."

He reached forward and knocked the door, more aggressively than he intended.

"Who the fuck is knocking at my door like some motherfucking feds?! It better not be no gawd damn feds!" They heard an older woman's voice from behind the door which kind of shocked them. Before they could share their shock, the door swung open. "Hello?!"

"Keisha Andrews?"

The woman looked the man up and down. "Yes. What you want?" She looked at all four men and it didn't take long for it to click, the family resemblance was uncanny. Her mood instantly becoming sour. "Oh hella nah. I've gone over 30 years without seeing one of your toxic Freeman asses and now you come out of nowhere and disturb my peace."

"We just wanna tal-" Dante was interrupted by the irate woman.

"Who sent you? Did Ryan's bitch ass send you? He wasn't shit."

Demetrius shook his head. "No, uncle Ryan is dead. He died a few years ago."

She began to chuckle at the news. "Damn, his ass finally dead. Did the streets take him? It should've done the moment I met his ass."

Before anyone could answer, Huey cleared his throat. "Why don't you let us inside? We won't be long. We answer any questions you have in exchange you answer a few questions we may ask. Deal?"

Keisha thought about it for a second. She knew she shouldn't let the vermin of a bloodline in her home but she was curious to what they wanted after all these years. Plus, she had two pistols stashed which she knew how to use if necessary. "Fine. Don't touch anything." She opened the door wider and allowed the men to walk into her home. Before she closed it, she looked around outside for anyone lurking since she could never trust them. The last thing she wanted was a shootout in her home.

They walked into the living room and sat on the couches that were there while she went back to her single chair right in front of the tv. "You wanna tell me your names and which Freeman you belong to?"

"Huey, my brother Riley. Chrisitan's sons. Dante and Demetrius, Dominic's sons. There's more of us too."

"Hmm. I see it but then again you all look like you can belong to either sibling. It's weird, very weird. No individuality, nothing... So, what brings you on these sides of town? The part of town I moved to so I can get away from your family." She questioned, wanting to get straight to the point so they could get out her house. She took out her half-used cigarette and lit it again. Once it was lit, she took a deep pull, knowing she was going to need it to get through this talk.

"We can't see family?" Dante poorly joked.

Anger grew on the womans face. "Family? What you motherfuckers have is not family, it's a business! A business that kills innocent people in the process. It's almost like I can smell the violence on you. It's sickening. Smells like blood, innocent blood. You didn't even have to tell me, I already know you're involved and the afro is the leader. I know a leader when I see on."

"That's not our intention." Demetrius told her. They weren't really phased by her words, they have heard similar things from other people before. It was nothing new.

"That's your problem, you don't mean to but you do! And you all just keep it pushing once the fucking smoke clears like shit never happened! Your family doesn't care about no one and I know that for a fact."

"They cared about Carmen." Huey looked her dead in the eyes as he said that and he could see the colour drain from her face at the name.

Her lip started to quiver. "Don't you ever say my daughter's name again. She didn't deserve to be born into your family... you know, I'm surprised you even know. No one muttered her name once her cousin was buried. Not a single word."

"We did some digging."

"Well stop. Ryan is the reason she is dead. It is his fault my daughter is dead!" She screamed at them.

"So is it your fault your son is in jail and your other son decided to move far away from you?" Huey asked rhetorically.

She gave him a side eye. "I had nothing to do with that."

"Oh ok, I thought we was blaming other people."

Keisha took another long pull from her cigarette. "Again, what the fuck do you want with me? Why have you come here talking about my daughter?"

"Well we think our aun-" Dante started to say but was stopped before he could tell her the news.

"Don't. She is not your aunt!" Keisha shouted once again. They could all tell how tense she was on the subject but they didn't appreciate all the hostility. They weren't even thought of when all this mess happened.

Riley kissed his teeth, today had been a very stressful day for him and he didn't have time for anyone's rudeness. "Look here lady, she was our aunt weather you liked it or not. Maybe if you never decided to fuck our uncle Ryan raw you wouldn't have produced a Freeman but guess what bitch, you did! Her last name is Freeman, meaning she is a Freeman in more ways than one. Get over it and listen to what we have to fucking say!"

The room fell silent after that. You could see the visible shock on her face but she didn't say anything, allowing Huey to take over.

"Carmen might be alive." He started off. Keisha's eyes grew wide. This was not what she expected to hear but then again she never expected, nor wished, to see a Freeman again. "We're pretty sure it's her which is the only reason we came to tell you. Everyone thought it was best to leave you out of it but we thought a mother would like to know that her child isn't dead and is in fact alive. We don't care how much you hate our family, just trust the new generation. We can't tell you the details but we'll get her back and you'll be able to see your daughter again."

Keisha's eyes teared up, overcome with emotion just like how his family was. "Carmen..." She said her name as if it was foreign to her. "She... she might be alive? Oh my gosh..." She looked up to the celling. "Why now Lord? After all these years of numbing pain you bring my baby back to me now? Why?" She slowly turned back to the Freeman's, the first ones she has seen in years. "If you are lying..."

"We wouldn't lie about something like this." Demetrius reassured her. "We were shocked at the revelation ourselves but we did our research. We made sure we were had evidence its Carmen and everything helps the case."

"If I find out you're lying I will burn down your house. I tried once, I'll do it again, this time successful." She threatened.

"Not if our aunt Cookie beats your ass again." Riley smirked in amusement and they saw the embarrassment on her face.

Before she could curse him out, Huey stepped back in. "That is all we came to say, we don't need any more of your time."

They all stood, ready to leave. "Wait." Keisha called. She had pulled out another cigarette, needed after what she just heard and lit it. After a pull, she spoke. "If that's my daughter... I wanna see her as soon as you get her. No later. I have waited all these years to see my daughter again, I always thought it would be when I died but if I can see her while living, I want to."

The Freeman's shared a look before looking back at the mother. "We'll see."

"Don't come out all this way, tell me this shit and say 'we'll see'. I want to see my daughter!"

Huey took a deep breath. "Fine."

With that, they walked out the house with not a glance back, leaving Keisha to sit in her chair alone and smoking. This was not what she expected the first time she saw a Freeman again, she thought the situation would've been more hostile but these new kids were different. They didn't seem like Ryan. The biggest mistake she ever made was falling into his bed. She should've ran when she had a chance. Even when she was pregnant, she should've ran. Carmen would've still been alive and happy with her. Wait... but her daughter was alive... her daughter was actually alive... she had to tell her sons.

* * *

Cheetah walked into her room with a deep sigh. It has been a long, physically draining week. She had killed so many people. Now, it didn't sound normal but to her it was, it has been for years. However, something seemed odd. Vladimir has been sending her out on more killing missions. Don't get her wrong, she loved them and she was the right person for them but the past few months she has been focused on pushing product. She had no idea why he was putting her out on the frontlines. As much as she tried to prove she was independent, he was still her boss and she had to listen to him. He liked to keep her hidden for special occasions but in the past few days, there was nothing that special about her killing tasks.

The other day for example. After she was done torturing the guy and was going to have her guys dump the body, Vladimir told her to go with them. He told her to kill who ever came but ordered to not kill the one with the afro, the leader, and the right hand, which didn't take her long to guess who it was. When she laid eyes on the afro, she couldn't believe it, it was so big! She wondered if her hair would ever get that big. Her adoptive parents would always straighten her hair saying it was more manageable that way so she has never seen her hair like his before. As she got older, she straightened it less and less until she did the big chop, now she preferred her hair short. It didn't get in the way and now it had gained its natural qualities again, healthy.

Nothing made sense but at the moment she was so tired, she didn't even care that it was only evening. She wanted to sleep. She decided to wash off all the dried blood and mud on her first. As she stepped into her EnSite bathroom, she stripped and turned on the shower, making sure it was hot. It didn't take long for the room to steam up. After selecting her shower playlist, she stepped in the shower. A satisfied sigh slipped out her lips as the water warmed her skin. As she cleaned the dirt off her body she decided to give her hair a good wash. As she touched her short hair, she felt the scar in her head. The first day in her life she remembered.

She has never experienced a more confusing day than the day she woke up.

* * *

_The young girl moaned. The pain in her head was unbearable. It was pulsating through her head. It hurt her so much._

_She stirred, trying to activate her limbs to move but it was hard. Everything just hurt. She could hear the sound of beeping next to her. Confused, she opened her eyes._

_It took her a while but she managed to do it. She looked up and saw a plain wall looking back at her. She looked down and around her. She was attached to wires and hooked up to a machine. That's where the beeping was coming from. Her arm was wrapped in a bandage, had a plain nightdress on and was in a bed. The pain in her head didn't get any better and she wondered why. She reached up and touched her head. It was wrapped in a bandage. She looked around. The room was basic. There was a sink, a mirror, a bed, a couple of cabinets but that's it._

_Still feeling a little disoriented but scared she looked over at the door. That's where she was going to escape to. She didn't know where she was or where the door would lead to but she needed to get out. She tugged at all the wires on her body, stiffening a moan in pain as she did so. The machine began to go off but she didn't care as much as her head did. She climbed out the bed and made her way towards the door, staggering._

_That's when the same door she was going to escape through burst open and two men and a woman walked through._

"_Hey! Get back in the bed!" The biggest one shouted at her._

_When he reached forward to grab her, she screamed and ran away from his reach faster than she expected herself to. The next man tried to grab her but she dodged that too. Just as she went to reach the door, they both finally grabbed her._

"_No! Get off of me! Let me gooooo!" She shrieked from the top of her lungs. Her head was shrieked at her to stop shouting but she didn't care, she was scared and needed to leave wherever she was._

"_Please, calm down! You're going to hurt yourself." The women in a lab coat begged her. She had to shout to be heard. "Please!"_

_The girl calmed down but it wasn't willingly. She had no adrenaline in her to continue to fight so she had no choice but to get back in the bed. She was tired. "Thank you." The woman softly smiled before hooking her back up to the machines. "You're a fast one aren't you? As drained as you were, I would have never expected that type of speed, especially from some as young as you."_

"_Where am I? Who are you?" The girl had to ask. She looked at her. She had short dark hair, dark eyes and tan skin. She looked no older than 35 and was pretty._

_The woman looked up at the girl as she put the needle back in her hand. "What is the last thing you remember?"_

_The girl sat and tried to look in her memories for something, anything but it was all blank. "I- I don't remember anything... I- I can't-" She began to tear up as she struggled to remember anything. She felt as if she needed to learn something but she couldn't._

"_Shhh shh. Its ok, its ok." The woman soothed. "My name is Dr Poppy Bell. I will be taking care of you and help you recover."_

"_What happened to me?"_

"_You really don't remember anything?" The girl slowly shook her head. Poppy sighed, trying to mask her happiness. Her boss would be happy to hear this. She went on to say the story they had rehearsed. "We found you on the side of a road not far from here. You were in a terrible car accident with your parents. They didn't survive but we found you and have been looking after you for the past two weeks."_

_She gasped. "2 weeks?" Poppy nodded sympathetically. "I was in an accident? My parents... they're dead?" She felt herself getting sad but she wasn't completely sure why. She couldn't even remember what they looked like or who they even were but she knew that she was supposed to be sad about it._

_Poppy nodded. "Yes I am afraid. We have been trying to find any other family but we are stumped. We've used all resources we have to find anyone but nothing." She lied._

_She sat and tried to remember anything but she couldn't. "But, but why can't I remember anything." She cried._

"_Because you hit your head pretty bad. You are very lucky to even be alive and functioning as well as you are already." She pointed to the bandage wrapped around the girls' head. "You've lost your memory sweetheart."_

"_Will I ever get it back?"_

"_I am uncertain about that but I very much doubt it."_

'_Hopefully it stays that way.' Poppy thought to herself but kept the fake smile on her face._

"_Oh..." She bowed her head but lifted it when she had another question. "What is my name? I don't know what my name is."_

"_Oh sweetheart..." She sighed. "I sadly don't know your real name either." She saw the girl become even more sad at hearing that. "Tell you what, if you don't remember in the next few days, I'll give you a cool one. Deal?" She held her hand out for a high five._

_The girl hesitated but gave the high five, a faint smile on her lips. "Ok."_

"_That's a good girl. Now, let's go over a few test shall we."_

_Poppy checked over the young patients' vitals and ran some test with the resources she had. The girl was unconscious for two weeks and her results came back clear. She recovered faster than she expected. She spent the rest of the day with the girl, watching her over which she never expected herself to do._

_A week went by and the girl had fully recovered at this point with still no memory but she wasn't too worried. Poppy had become a friend to her during this time which meant she wasn't as scared or anxious anymore. She was there every day throughout most of the day and the two would play games, laugh and talk. Poppy even started teaching her a few things to keep her from getting bored._

_Today was like any other days, or so the young girl thought._

"_And what colour is this?" Poppy pointed to the flashcard in her hand._

"_Red."_

_Poppy grinned. "Well done!"_

"_Thank you." She giggled._

"_Wow. You have really made a speedy recovery. Like I have never seen before."_

_Before they could continue to talk, there was a knock at the door and then it opened._

_The little girl's breath caught in her throat as she laid eyes on the new comers, ones she hadn't seen before. There was a very muscular white man with black hair and blue eyes. Next to him was a skinnier man with dark blonde hair and brown eyes and finally a little boy with the same physical traits as the last man._

"_Um, why are you here?" Poppy asked nervously._

"_Why, I came to see the little girl I saved of course." The skinnier one smiled._

_The girl's eyes casted over him. "You saved me?"_

"_Sure did." He lied effortlessly. "What's your name little girl?"_

_She sunk into her bed, embarrassed. "I- I don't know my name."_

"_Aww well isn't that a pity." He faked frowned. He already knew this information. He then turned to Poppy with a straight face. "I heard she's recovering well."_

_Poppy nodded and smiled. "Yes, she's made a full recover. She is very fast. Fast in many ways actually."_

"_Yes I remember you telling me how she ran from my men." The little black girl felt embarrassed once again, not used to having so many eyes on her. "Wait! That will be your name."_

_She was confused now. "Huh? What will be my name?"_

_The man slowly stepped forward towards the bed. "Cheetah. The fastest land animal in the world. Just think, a very very fast car cannot match a cheetahs speed and you managed to get away from two big men the first time very quickly."_

_The girl gasped, fascinated by the information. "I wanna see a cheetaaah."_

"_Maybe one day little Cheetah." He winked at her, testing out the new name. By the smile on her face he knew she liked it. "Now that you have a name, I will tell you mine. My name is Igor, I-"_

"_That's not fair. I want a cool nickname." The younger boy cut of the man with his arms crossed._

_Igor slowly turned around in annoyance, glaring at him. "Excuse my rude son Cheetah. He's just an attention seeking bastard otherwise known as Vladimir."_

_Vladimir rolled his eyes. "I'm 9. I need attention all the time."_

"_No you don't you little dip shit." Igor then cursed at him in Russian before turning to Poppy. "What do you advise we do with her?"_

_Cheetah looked up confused and began to panic. "I'm not staying here? Where am I going to go?"_

_Poppy softly smiled between the girl and the other man in the room. She was still a little upset that Igor stepped in and took the chance to give the girl a new name but she had to get over it, she couldn't try to override her boss's discussion. "Cheetah. The other man over there is my husband Harry." The man nodded in acknowledgment, still not saying anything. "After a long talk these past two days, we felt as if it would be a good idea to have you live with us. We have a spare room that we can design however you wish but that is if you want it."_

_Everyone watched Cheetah look back and forth between the couple. Poppy had a very welcoming and warm aura whereas Harry seemed very closed off and cold. They looked like polar opposites, making it hard to imagine them being married to each other. She could tell Poppy was more than happy to have her but she had to analyse Harry since they had just met. She looked at him intensely, trying to figure him out and he just stared back. Even though she was only five, from what she was told, she could already understand when someone didn't really like her and Harry didn't. She thought it wouldn't be a good idea to go with them because of that reason however, she didn't have much choice. She was told her parents are dead and they couldn't find anyone to take care of her and here Poppy was, willing to take care of her. She had no idea what was on the other side of the door but she guessed going with Poppy and Harry was the only way she was going to find out._

_She smiled at Poppy. "Ok. I'll come with you." She jumped in Poppy's arms who sighed in happiness. She never thought she would have a child but for some reason, being around this little girl, one that looked nothing like her, she could feel her motherly instincts creeping out. Her 'talk' with her husband consisted mostly of shouting. They agreed to not have children, even going as far as getting her tubes tied and getting a vasectomy but she had to explain that with Cheetah, they skipped the baby stage. The stage they were dreading. She even said how quickly Cheetah was catching onto things so it wouldn't be hard to raise the girl. He eventually agreed but he was still on edge about the whole situation._

_Igor clapped his hands together while Vladimir rolled his eyes at his father's enthusiasm. "Well isn't this lovely? One big happy family. Vlad, you can even be friends with Cheetah. Show her around and help her get used to her new life and what not."_

_Vladimir screwed his face in disgust. "Ew. She's a baby and a girl. I don't want to hang out with her."_

_Suddenly, a box of pens flew across the room, hitting Vlad in the middle of his forehead, making him yelp in pain._

_Everyone looked at the direction it came from._

"_I am not a baby." Cheetah crossed her arms, making Igor's smile grow on his face, not caring about the red mark forming on his sons' head._

"_Yes, yes, yes! Just what I was looking for." He made sure his eyes were level with Cheetah. She was confused but the man continued on. "You are going to fit in just fine little Cheetah. I am sure of it." He stood up straight and addressed the room. "Well, I have to leave now, Harry come, Vlad, stay and help Poppy get Cheetah situated at her new home."_

"_But-" Vlad tried to protest but his father was already out the room. He turned to the females in the room with his arms crossed. "This isn't fair." Poppy had to hold her eye roll, seeing the attitude of his father in the 9-year-old. "I'm going to hate this."_

_Cheetah rolled her eyes, giving attitude straight back. "Someone's being a baby."_

_Poppy snickered as she watched the boy turn red, obviously embarrassed about his strop and being told off by a younger girl. She looked between the two who were glaring at each other and grinned. As much as they disliked each other now, it wasn't going to last long. She knew it._

* * *

And just as her mother said, it didn't.

Cheetah moved into the Bell's small apartment the same day and everything changed in a blink of an eye. It didn't take long for her to slowly be exposed to what she was being brought into. A gang. Something the little girl eventually adapted to but that wasn't until nearly two years later.

Harry was very cold towards her in the beginning, barely speaking a word to her within the first month but he eventually warmed up to her. His tall and muscular self was really a sweetheart behind closed doors. After five years and still no memory, Cheetah decided to make a big decision all call Poppy and Harry ma and pops which they were over the moon about. Cheetah loved her little family. They did the best they could to raise her but what she remembered a lot from her childhood and even going into being a teen was Igor's involvement.

Till this day, she never understood why Igor took such a liking to her, from the very moment he met her. She always got special treatment from him. She would put it down to him being the one that saved her but she felt it was more than that. When Vlad would get special training away from the other few gang members children, Cheetah was right next to him too. If Igor had to go away on a business trip and Vlad could go, Harry, being the right hand, would bring her. She never fully understood but eventually didn't care. She liked the attention. She knew she was different. Being 1 of 10 ethnic minority at the time, she knew she was different and Poppy at some point tried to help with the identity crisis part but it didn't really last long. Cheetah found who she was herself.

Anyway, Vladimir disliked Cheetah for unknown reasons for a good few years. She would always say it was because his father would treat a child that belonged to no one like how he treated his actual son. The dislike for her continued until she hit full puberty. That's when everything flipped.

She was 15, he was 19. She didn't know any better and everyone even thought it was great that they were together. She did too. They dove in head first and got in a relationship with Vlad only for it to become very toxic. They were together for a total of 12 years but she could probably say that a total of 4 years was good. He cheated so she would cheat back, he apologised, she's apologised, they had sex. They argued, things would get thrown and said, they had sex. A repetitive cycle. They went through the same problems too many times. Her name got thrown around in a different type of context a lot during that time.

She even knew he wanted to put his hands on her so many times but he had too much respect for her father so would shout at her instead and throw things around her when they were angry at each other. Cheetah knew another reason was because he knew she would fuck him up if he ever laid a hand on her. She wished she didn't waste 12 years of her life dealing with Vlad. They were better friends but it was too late. They already crossed the line.

Years after their break up, he would still pursue her every now and then, trying to see if she would let him back in but she had burned that bridge. She wasn't going back. She didn't need his negativity in her love life, it was bad enough they were still around each other this much but he needed her to help with the gang so she stayed.

She stepped out the shower, not wanting to think anymore of her deep history. She walked back into her room and instantly grabbed her knife that was on the dressing table before putting it back down.

"It's about time you got out the shower, I have been waiting a long time for you."

She rolled her eyes. "What do you want Vlad?"

"I came to see you of course." He slowly stood from the other side of the bed and turned, walking towards where she was standing. He licked his lips as he watched the water droplets stroll down her freshly cleaned body.

"Get out. If you needed me, you would've called or text and then I would've met you at your office, like always."

He sighed. "But this is more fun. I miss seeing you like this. I can't stop thinking about you, about u-"

She held up her hand, stopping him. "Let's not."

"Oh come on! That was years ago, we can start again. I promise I will stop cheating."

She moved in front of her dresser, about to take out underwear to put on. "No we cannot."

A gush of wind ran across Cheetah's body, making her shiver since she was set damp from her shower. Vladimir had managed to rip off her towel and throw her on the bed before she could react. He had a large smirk on his face for many reasons. One being that he managed to get her on the bed before she could fight back and that he was able to see her naked body again.

Cheetah rolled her eyes but stayed where she was on the bed, annoyed.

Vlad traced the scar on her abdomen before looking up to her eyes. "You know, I always found this scar sexy."

"I don't even know how I got it."

"It doesn't matter, it's still sexy." He reached down and kissed it. She was so distracted from his lips, she didn't even notice his hands were very close to her bottom set of lips. She bit her lip to stop her gasp but he already knew she was trying to hold back. "Don't you miss this? Don't you miss me touching you here?"

Before he could move inside of her, she slammed her legs shut. He tried to move his hand further up but her legs were staying closed firmly. She glared at him, telling him what to do with her eyes. He sighed and removed his hand but stayed on top of her. "Why are you fighting so hard?"

"Because I have moved on Vlad. Us together was a mistake. You and I both know that."

"But I know you miss when I made your cum everywhere."

She rolled her eyes once again. "Look, I hate to tell you this but I have cummed with other guys too. Which reminds me." She punched him in the arm hard. "That's for killing Jeremy. How you going to kill a guy just because we fucked?"

"He owed me money." He shrugged. She could see straight through his lie.

"No he didn't and I know that for a fact. Stop lying to me." She told him.

He sighed. "Fine fine. I saved you from getting bad dick anyway. No one can compare to me. You're welcome."

Cheetah pushed Vladimir off her and got off the bed. She decided there was no point in covering up so she just went to her drawer, grabbed on oversized t-shirt and threw it on. "Now now. You had good dick, he had gooooood dick." She smirked, satisfied as she watched his face crumble. "Forget it. You've already embarrassed yourself enough tonight. You can leave now. I'll get back to whatever trouble you want me to cause the Panther's tomorrow. Today, I need rest."

He huffed in frustration, irritated he didn't get no action. "Fine but you're missing out. I'll give some to Natasha." He tried to make her jealous but it did not work.

"Good thing I didn't fuck, I would've received an std." She laughed. "Goodbye Vlad. Have fun with your play thing." She waved at him as he walked out the room.

"This isn't over!" He declared before turning down the hallway.

She sighed and locked the door then got into her bed. "Just very delusional..." She snuggled into her bed and drifted off into a deep sleep.

For some reason that night, she couldn't get a certain large afro out her dream but like many people, she wouldn't even remember in the morning.

* * *

**Well, that was interesting. Just to reiterate, I changed Gianna name to Jencia because as I was writing about what happened to her, I didn't like the similarities to Gianna Byrant so I changed her name out of respect. I hope it wasn't too confusing for you. I'm going through the last few chapters and checking everything, I won't upload until I fix my mistakes because you guys don't deserve that.**

**But now we got to hear the full story about what happened to Carmen and Jencia Freeman. Sad, I know. What do you think is going to happy now that the secret is out? What do you think is going to happen when Riley and Royalty go to talk to Nike or when Jazmine talks to Jayden? Stay tuned.**

**Thank you for all your reviews as always. Sorry! At first, I wasn't going to make Riley the father but he needed a little kick up his ass and this certainly is it. I am glad you like the dates, trying to experience at least one of those smh but there will be more cute moments between the couple throughout the madness and drama.**

**I can't believe I managed to put out two chapters in a month. It has been so long since I have been able to do that.**

**Until next time,**

**-TBG**


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